The American people were against it. Every congressman on the floor got at least twenty calls against the bailout for every one call in favor the bailout (or rescue plan or whatever). And that was even after big business representatives used their lobbyists and buying power to get their personal representatives (who claim to be our representatives) on the phone.
Though the American people were against it, congress, which is not in the business of representing the American people but actually represents the international banking system, decided to pass it anyway. Because you see, California wasn't gonna be able to make payroll.
Seriously, that was one of the major reasons listed by our alleged representatives for the passing of this bailout plan: California needed a loan.
Excuse me while I hit myself in the face with a big chunk of ice.
Okay, I'm calm. And a little shivery.
So, what did they pass? What are the details of the bill? Well, first let's look at the meat of the matter, the alleged cure for the credit crisis: the bailout plan. Now, "plan" may be too strong a word in this case because nothing here is actually planned. I think it would be better to call it the "bailout idea" or the "bailout clue" or perhaps even the "bailout plan to plan." You see, before you can just throw money at a problem, you have to identify both the problem and the amount of money to throw at it.
Ben Bernanke, the illustrious controller of the illegal cartel that taxes us through inflation without representation (some call it The Federal Reserve) told lawmakers that the aim of the bailout is to buy distressed securities (or mortgage-backed debt obligations) at above their current value but below what they're supposed to be worth if everything was perfect and we all lived in La La Land.
So basically, our money is going to be used to buy distressed bank assets at above what they're worth. Awesome.
And how did the stock market respond?
Thanks for not asking. It dived like a diver off a high dive because… drum roll please: BANKS IN NEED OF GOVERNMENT HELP IS A HUGE SIGN OF BAD TIMES.
Think about it for a second, if you knew a person on welfare and you had a choice between investing in that dude or your other buddy with a job, who would you invest in and/or wager on? The dude with money, obviously. The market wagers on future income. And anyone relying on government help for past indiscretions is in the middle of a Sacramento sized pickle (on the flip side, the market loves it when the governments give industries cash for future endeavors–I feel you need to know this). Wall Street knows who's on the dole. And they don't like it.
Bailouts don't help the stock market or the average investor. Nor were they meant to. They help the companies being bailed out. But wait, there's more. Egg roll please…
In addition to wasting our 700 billion dollars to help out the friends of the rich, other amendments were thrown into the bailout plan. Here are some of the key monetary appropriations (i.e., places tax dollars end up):
- 2 million dollars for the makers of toy wooden arrows for children (not making this up)
- 100 million dollar tax break for owners of auto race tracks (seriously not making this up)
- 148 million dollar tax break for domestic wool producers (wish I was making this up)
- 15 billion dollar tax incentives for makers of solar and wind power (because nothing dictates innovation like free money)
- 8 billion dollars of tax relief for victims of natural disasters (nothing funny about hurricane victims, unfortunately)
- 500 million dollars in credits for movie companies that produce films in the US (about time someone bailed out those poor Hollywood producers)
- 10 million dollar credit to help businesses offset the cost of storing bicycles at their offices (I quit–seriously, this is killing me over here… dying… slowly)
The American people told congress that this bill would not help them. Congress passed it anyway. The American people sent a clear message to congress: quit meddling with our currency. If it wasn't for congress, there would have been no Community Reinvestment Act, no Fannie Mae and no Freddie Mac… in short, there would have been no reason to have a bailout. Yet here we are… again… sigh.
And so, congress once again acted in accordance with the wishes of those who control the money supply… it's the same old sad tale. They sided with the rich because the rich pay them. You can't blame them. You can only hate them for behaving like greedy scoundrels.
I'd love to tell you that either McCain or Obama will make this all better. But they won't. Governments love controlling money supplies because it makes it harder for governments to lose power. And so, whether you vote for the old white dude or the young black dude, when it comes to the money supply and the value of currency, you're still screwed either way.
I don't know about you, but I don't feel very bailed out.