NO BAILOUT….The bailout bill has failed. Two-thirds of the House GOP caucus — primarily the lunatics in the Republican Study Committee, I assume — voted against it. I have a feeling we might now get a bunch of emergency nationalizations whether we like it or not.
Our current financial crisis has never been explained well to the public because (a) it’s mind-bogglingly complex and (b) even the experts don’t entirely know what’s going on. And the Paulson plan was never sold well because (a) the initial draft was indefensible and (b) the theory underlying it was uncertain and complicated. So Lou Dobbs and his brand of populist yahooism won out instead.
I don’t know what happens next. Hopefully we’ll get another bite at the apple, but with Congress adjourning and elections approaching, action is only going to get harder, not easier. In the meantime, I guess we just have to pray that all the Chicken Littles like me are worrying too much.
On another note, an upcoming debate whose main attraction is the possibility of Sarah Palin melting down amusingly is suddenly less appealing than it used to be. I’m not really in the mood for bread and circuses right now.
