Masters of Disaster

I staggered back to the underground
And the breeze blew back my hair
I remember throwing punches around
And preaching from my chair
--The Who

During his press conference last night, President Obama focused on the economic situation and the need to quickly pass the new spending initiative. The tone of the exchange was set by Mr Obama's claim, something he's voiced before, that presently 'the federal government is the only entity left with the resources to jolt our economy back to life.'

This is, of course, nonsense. Government must obtain resources by direct (taxes) or indirect (debt, inflation) confiscation from the people. He is saying that the government knows better how to deploy these resources than individuals do, and it will commandeer accordingly. Folks who accept these claims at face value are either not engaging their brains, or they're granting the speaker a pass.

Today, Treasury Secretary Geithner followed with the announcement of a new $2 trillion tranche for the banks. The plan was long on concept and short on details, something that disturbed both Senate Republicans and the financial markets. When Senator Jim DeMint from South Carolina asked Mr Geithner where this $2 trillion would come from, the Secretary effortlessly suggested that we'd borrow it by selling notes to both domestic and foreign creditors. He also also asserted that the government 'must act early and aggressively' in these difficult times.

In case you haven't noticed, the Federal government has assumed control of the situation.

Oxymoronish indeed.