It's the Economy, and I still feel stupid.

Had enough of cute little bunnies and weird French rugby stars? This should bring you back to earth: our economic crisis. Which is either really really bad, an absolute disaster, or the end of life as we know it, depending on who you last talked to.

Jack makes a stab at it and wonders if "we didn't just see the big banks [pull] an old-time holdup on the Fed." He has much more to say in his comment which you should read. I read one relatively conservative economist who called it a coup-d'etat by the Finance Minister.


Jack goes on to mention this, a factor that I have heard mentioned, but don't see how it would be a big enough factor to cause the massive amounts of bad debt we have piled up. Aside from that, I am always willing to blame the greed and foolishness of those with big bucks (e.g. bankers and others Masters of the Universe). But here's Jack:

Even if it was a conscious conspiracy by the bankers (unlikely) I find it hard to blame them. I've read increasingly that many of the bankers were complicit in such loans because Congress was pressuring them to do it. Listening to the administration the last few years, I suspect they were pressuring the bankers, too. Remember all the boasting a few years ago about how home ownership was higher than it had ever been?

I don't think Jack is indulging in the blame some McCain spokespeople are casting on the Carter and Clinton administrations (how did it skip over the Reagan years?) nor the finger pointing at minority homeowners (they would be a subset of a subset). Here is a little video from Talking Points Memo with some examples.

I also find David Brooks' view very interesting. If you read his column carefully you will see that he has written McCain/Palin right out of the equation (in fact Brooks seems to be turning against the McCain campaign much against his will). This seems to be the core of his take:

The Paulson rescue plan is one chapter. But there will be others. Over the next few years, the U.S. will have to climb out from under mountainous piles of debt. Many predict a long, gray recession. The country will not turn to free-market supply-siders. Nor will it turn to left-wing populists. It will turn to the safe heads from the investment banks. For Republicans, people like Paulson. For Democrats, the guiding lights will be those establishment figures who advised Barack Obama last week — including Volcker, Robert Rubin and Warren Buffett.

As for me, I have a sore throat and thinking about numbers, especially one with 11 zeros behind it, makes my head hurt. I think it is time for ....

.... VIKING KITTENS!