Anyhoo, here are some interesting and enlightening links I ran across this past week.
Monetarism, not Capitalism, is the Culprit
At some point in their history, the largest banks on Wall Street may have participated in a marginally capitalist system, but it has not been that way since at least the early 1990's (the transformation began in the 1960's). What the financial system has become today is one of monetarism, not capitalism. This is an entirely profound distinction that needs to be fully appreciated to unlock both long-term economic growth and a denouement for the now-monetized economy.Go read the whole thing to understand how unhinged banking has wrecked the economy.
Elections are won in the middle
The "middle" is broadly defined as the moderate middle, independents, or whatever you want to call them. That is where elections are won. David Paul Kuhn Explains…
There are twice as many conservatives in America as liberals. Yet the emboldened conservative base can take Republicans only to roughly 40 percent of the electorate. And it’s the final 10 yards that counts in American politics.Has China Peaked? Can We bounce back?
Dismal democrats like Tom Friedman and Peter Orzag who sing commucrapitalist China's praises should be ignored. They sap our national will, and their wealth and over-education blind them to the fact that America’s unique strength lies in free people pursuing individual dreams in the free marketplace.
Joel Kotkin restores some sanity. He considers an ascendent China of the near future boldly asserting itself, but reassures Orzag, "Comfortably ensconced at bailed-out Citigroup," and “one-party autocracy” fanboy Friedman that this outcome is not inevitable.
Arguably our biggest advantage lies in the very thing our upper echelons increasingly disdain — our messy multicultural democracy and our addiction to the rule of law. “The secret of U.S. success is neither Wall Street or Silicon Valley but its long-surviving rule of law and the system behind it,”
Liu Yazhou, a Chinese two-star general, recently said. “The American system…is designed by genius and for the operation of the stupid.” (Kotkin - China's Fat Years)A Rare burst of honesty from Government…
Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) and Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) are sponsoring the Honest Budget Act.
Even if this does not pass, it is still refreshing to hear someone in government admit that the budget process is fundamentally dishonest.
Have a great weekend!
