Friday, October 10, 2008

Stock Market: Selling Fear

Sefl-fulfilling prophecies of recent weeks:

1.  The credit markets are frozen, and therefore no one can borrow money.

2.  Our fianncial system is on the verge of collapse unless we take emergecy action for the taxpayers to bail them out.  Even a delay will be too late. See item 1 above.  If you were asked to loan money, what would you do when you are being told the financial markets were on the verge of collapse.  The Wall Streeet bailout was sold with fear, and that was worse than any possible consequences of not having a Wall Street bailout.

3.  Massive, central planning control of the entire system is necessary:  That is the message from a Wall Streeet begging for handouts and bailouts, instead of trying to figure out how to make the system work.  Wall Street has proved itself, in this crisis, to be no better--worse, really--than the stereotypical "welfare mother" having babies just to get more government assistance.  And what happens when every "magic government solution" does not satisfy the panicking people on Wall Street, and in the media?  There is "demand" for yet another taxpayer solution.  This is a death spiral, unless people start stainding up, apart from any government action--standing up to the fear and panic.

4.  The mainstream media worldwide is acting as the agent of panic, and have been for some time.

5.  Our politicians--especially leftist politicians who don't even like capitalism except to make themseelves money, but including establishment Republicans--are also selling fear, as to many "opinion leaders" mention teh "Great Depression", and "depression".  One is probably too many, and we seem to have a majority of the mainstream media, and our politicans, doing that same stupid thing.

What have all of the above people accomplished?  The only think they have been successful at is selling fear.  They have been very good at that.  It is too bad we needed them to be better at some other things, starting with FDR's message (from the beginning, and not after you have already successfully sold fear):  "All we have to fear is fear itself."

P.S.  It is stilll insane, as Jim Cramer and I agree, to allow short selling in this environment.  Morgan Stanley is being driven into the ground  In today's world of computer trading and computer communications, short sellers--in this envrionment--can act in concert without any explicit agreement.  It is insane to allow such corruption, and it is corruption--even if legal--in this environment.

P.S. 2.  The names of Cox (SEC chief), Bernanke (Fed chief) and Paulson (Treasury chief) are becoming more and more certain to go down in infamy--names cited throughout future history as the worst failures in the history of world finance.  All They have successfully done is sell fear.  They all should have been fired months ago.  They should still be fired.  Talk about accountability!!!!!  Where is the "accountability" with these people?  Yes, it is past time for President Bush to go.  But it is not like he has been any more stupid that the supposed "experts", including leftist "experts", on Wall Street.  His worst stupidity is listening to those "experts", instead of firing them.  The prospect of Obama, Reid and Pelosi running this country should scare you to death.  Yes, you could regard that as my one fear spreading message.  I don't think our economy is doomed--excpet maybe with those 3 people running the country.  I just wish the thought of McCain, Reid and Pelosi made me feel a lot better.  In short, the "smartest people in the room" have proven to be the stupidest.  Yet, they are still talking like we should consider them the "smartest peple in the room".  I don't.  I consider them proven to be the stupidest people in the room.  The "smartest people in the room" would have seen the housing "bubble" coming.  These people are stupid (including all of CNBC and Wall Street, and virtually all of our politicians--it goes without saying that the maintream media is included in the stupid group, but we already knew that).  You should pay no attention to any of these people.  They have no clue.

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