David Brooks on Bailout Nation
Nice mention of the book today in David Brook’s NYT Op Ed piece:
“Over the past year, the federal government has poured money into the economy hundreds of billions of dollars at a time. It has also guaranteed investments, loans and deposits worth about $8 trillion. Barry Ritholtz, the author of “Bailout Nation,” points out that this project constitutes the largest infusion in American history.
If you add up just the funds that have already been committed, you get a figure, according to Jim Bianco of Bianco Research, that is larger in today’s dollars than the costs of the Marshall Plan, the Louisiana Purchase, the New Deal, the Korean War, Vietnam and the S.&L. crisis combined.
Is all this money doing any good?
The financial system seems to have stabilized, but bank lending is minimal, home prices keep falling, consumer spending is plummeting, and the economy continues to dive.
Pretty cool buzz developing giving the timing and all . . .
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Source:
Stimulus for Skeptics
DAVID BROOKS
NYT, November 28, 2008
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/28/opinion/28brooks.html
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November 28th, 2008 at 1:03 pm
I am not sure that all of this bailout ever was expected to stop home prices from collapsing. thats because that is caused by wages collapsing. and nothing will stop that. and that will continue the collapse in consumer spending now that consumers are restricted to wages. and since this a consumer driven economy, it can only go one way. down! course this could be just the big equalization of the standard of living that had to come, in which case we are not done yet!
November 28th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
“Is all this money doing any good?”
The wrong question (IMO).
Two questions which better encapsulate the issues:
a) do the benefits outweigh the costs, when viewed from the perspective of the next 12 months?
b) do the benefits outweigh the costs, when viewed from the perspective of the next 10 years?
My view: “yes” to (a), and “definitely not” to (b).
November 28th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
Nice work, Barry. Your book is on my Christmas list.
On another note, this is what we’ve come to apparently, “Wal Mart Worker Trampled to Death by Black Friday Surge”. Just wonderful.
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/
November 28th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
#21,117 on Amazon… and risin’.
And #6 in the Macroeconomics category!
The title alone should get you into the top 100; it is the perfect title for the times.
And when the book tour starts, I see it in the top 10!
Good luck.
November 28th, 2008 at 1:45 pm
…costs of …
the Louisiana Purchase
the New Deal
the Marshall Plan
the Korean War
Vietnam
the S.&L
Looks to me as though ROI each time has progrssively worsened.
November 28th, 2008 at 1:58 pm
Speaking of bailouts…..looks like the UK is now majority shareholder in RBS.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/29/business/worldbusiness/29rbs.html?hp
The curtain has been pulled for all to see at this point. How in the world is confidence going to be restored?
November 28th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
I think the best that can be achieved by the bailouts is to keep most companies (employers) in business. It is a given that the economy is going to contract. Consumers aren’t *that* stupid. They aren’t going to run out and borrow money…they are going to beef up their savings accounts and pay down debt. The light amount of air travel that occurred over Thanksgiving is just the tip of the iceberg.
In the long-term this contraction is a good thing because eventually consumers will have enough ‘dry powder’ to make major purchases again (and by then housing other prices will have fallen). The next 2-5 years are not going to be pretty for retailers.
November 28th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
So when can we expect to see the book on the shelves? If we place an order for it over the web, will we be able to give it as a Christmas gift? (i.e., no later than Dec 25th)
November 28th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
MANNWICH SAID: Speaking of bailouts…..looks like the UK is now majority shareholder in RBS.
I wonder if RBS will ever occupy their enormous new building in Stamford? Maybe the State of Connecticut can buy it to use as the new unemployment office. Now there is a growth industry.
November 28th, 2008 at 6:29 pm
This is too funny [lol]
Turn capitalism on/off
Link
November 29th, 2008 at 12:37 am
Brooks is top shelf and should generate orders on Amazon.
Too big to fail and has to be bailed out, sounds to me like something that should have been broken up while breaking up was still a good option. The amount of money boggles the mind.
Good luck with the book Barry. It’s on my list.
Any chance of an audio version in the future for us commuters? I’ve been known to memorize sections to and from work. And then paraphrase them at the coffee machine and at lunch.
November 29th, 2008 at 2:31 am
“Any chance of an audio version in the future for us commuters? I’ve been known to memorize sections to and from work. And then paraphrase them at the coffee machine and at lunch.”
here’s more Market data in support of BRIPTV / IP Radio / MP3s
BR,
as I’ve mentioned before, Rukeyser is no longer with us, Gens X&Y, at the minimum, need something other than the ‘Mainstream’ Bilge to pump into our Software Programmable Radios, now with File accessible Data Storage~
December 2nd, 2008 at 11:31 am
And Merriam-Webster Dictionary just declared “bailout” their word of the year for 2008. This book is very timely. Can’t wait to read it!