Obama's World Editorial: Be Afraid

Obama has published an editorial in 31 nations around the globe. It's also in the Chicago Tribune. Read the whole thing as he makes many points. But the words below are just not ones I want to see under the byline of an American president - particularly when speaking to the entire world.

Capitalism can be unforgiving, particularly for the imprudent, or unwise. It isn't actually capitalism without that. And private sector compensation is not the province of government in a free-market world. Also, there will inevitably be booms and busts in a free market, as it is speculative by nature. Ultimately, I'm left wondering just how free Obama intends to leave American markets if he gets his way.

Lastly, it is more our state and federal governments, not capitalists, who have and are now engaging in reckless speculation and spending beyond their means. Too bad Obama doesn't appear to appreciate the wisdom in checking that.

"But I also know that we need not choose between a chaotic and unforgiving capitalism and an oppressive government-run economy," he wrote. "That is a false choice that will not serve our people or any people."

While these actions can help get us out of crisis, we cannot settle for a return to the status quo. We must put an end to the reckless speculation and spending beyond our means, and to the bad credit, overleveraged banks and absence of oversight that condemns us to bubbles that inevitably bust.

Rigorous transparency and accountability must check abuse, and the days of out-of-control compensation must end.

Comments

[Greg Toombs]

"it is more our state and federal governments, not capitalists, who have and are now engaging in reckless speculation and spending beyond their means."

Given government's power and prominance, one might say they act as a role model many emulate.

Corruption. Profligacy. No accountability.

How then can we realistically expect our citizen's to behave better than the politicians?

[JustOneMan]

"days of out-of-control compensation must end"

Why doesnt King Barry limit the compensation to attorneys? Ill bet it wall street comp to executives is dwarfed by the compensation to attorneys -$300-1,000 per hour and 60% of settlement fees.... Or how about limiting the excess compenstaion in our public education system...in my school district (with only one high school) the Superintendent makes over $250,000 plus benefits, retirement (60% of salary for life) and perks, and many teachers make over $80,000 for nine months of work...

[gus]

Obama is a clown. He has Marxist opinions and no experience at anyting except affirmative action.
This big eared dimwit just spent nearly $800,000,000.00 to get elected.

[anon]

Here's what I read: blah, blah, blah, platitude, platitude, platitude....

Again, though to me the real issue is that the President of the United States appears to be trying to govern the nation and deal with the G-20 through a media relations campaign.

Campaigning, press releases, policy statements, speeches, that's all he knows. He doesn't have a clue about governing or even how government or diplomacy works.

[Eric Eikenberry]

"many teachers make over $80,000 for nine months of work..."

Um, they make $80k for 12 months of work... Know many places willing to hire 50-yr old teachers for summer jobs? No? I didn't think so. $80k for 12 months, for a position often saddled with continuing education requirements, is peanuts. What does an IT manager make at a large company? Even $250k for a superintendent isn't too bad, considering what Michelle Obama made working (cough, cough) for a hospital in Chicago in something called "outreach". A Superintendent often is called upon to make the difficult decisions, or to at least come up with sensible budget recommendations for a school board to vote upon. That makes it a managerial position similar to what you might find at a medium size interstate company. I'll bet executives at medium-sized companies make far more than that super does, don't they?

School system expenses are FAR less than health care expenses for illegal aliens, Medicaid, Welfare, etc. The system is collapsing under the burden of providing for the chronically lazy. Just as it always does in socialist economies...

What is truly frightening is that B. Hussein doesn't understand how the Free Market works, so his immediate choice is to REGULATE a system he doesn't understand. Regulation BREEDS boom and bust cycles by artifically trying to level them out. A long period of LEVEL, artificially-regulated growth does NOT allow for normal price-based market corrections. This is what we had with the home loan industry. The Fed Gov't forced banks into the risky loan business. Then they help to keep interest rates low, encouraging risky lending practices. Finally, they allowed complex bundled "mortgage securities" to be traded at under-leveraged equity amounts. Spiraling ever upward in perceived value, they of course had nowhere to go but down when the residential and commercial property loans fell in value last year. When they did drop, mark-to-market regulations ensured that similar "mortgage securities" held at banks and investment houses around the world simultaneously dropped in value (when in fact some of these securities are just fine) creating an overnight loss of trillions of dollars world-wide. Eliminate mark-to-market regulations and these banking companies would look stable again (on their balance sheets).

Don't buy the Socialist-in-Chief's crap about "blame the rich"... It's been used by every Socialist dictator around the world, time and again, to rile up "the People" so that ONE LEADER, and ONE CENTRAL GOV'T can make ALL OF THE DECISIONS in your life. USSR, Cuba, Germany, China, Venezuela, Italy, Japan, North Korea... All run into the ground by "nationalist-socialists" in the past, resulting in massive world wars (exceptions are Cuba and Venezuela because they're just too darn small to make much of a dent). China's time, I fear, is coming...

[Jane]

There go my future bonuses...

[torabora]

All this pontificating about excess coming from a man who eats $100/lb steak.

He can go to hell.

[Reaganite Republican Resistance]

Time is now on the GOP's side... and Obama knows it.

When all his pork-n-welfare fails to produce real economic gains -but stokes inflation and crashes the dollar- the Democrats will be decimated in 2010.

One could make the argument that he's rolling out all his radical plans as soon as possible, before the day comes when people wince at the mention of his name... sure seems like it.

http://reaganiterepublicanresistance.blogspot.com

[gary gulrud]

I'm not sure what O really believes, only that what he say's is no indication whatever.