Posted on 11/25/2008 11:29:03 AM PST by Shermy
(from September 30, after the bailout first failed in the House)
SAO PAULO, Brazil (AP) - Astounded by the U.S. government's failure to resolve the financial crisis threatening the foundations of the global free market, fingers of blame are pointing at America from around the planet.
Latin American leaders say the U.S. must quickly fix the financial crisis it created before the rest of the world's hard-won economic gains are lost.
"The managers of big business took huge risks out of greed," said President Oscar Arias of Costa Rica, whose economy is highly dependent on U.S. trade. "What happens in the United States will affect the entire world and, above all, small countries like ours."
In Europe, where some blame a phenomenon of "casino capitalism" that has become deeply engrained from New York to London to Moscow, there is more of a sense of shared responsibility. But Europeans also blame the U.S. government for letting things get out of hand.
...Even staunch U.S. allies like Colombian President Alvaro Uribe blasted the world's most powerful country for egging on uncontrolled financial speculation that he compared to a wild horse with no reins.
"The whole world has financed the United States, and I believe that they have a reciprocal debt with the planet," he said.
It's harder for European leaders to point the finger directly at the United States since many of their financiers participated in the recklessness. London was home to the division of failed insurer AIG that racked up huge losses on credit-default swaps, and many reputable European banks disregarded risk to load up on higher yielding subprime assets.
But the House's rejection Monday of the U.S. bank bailout proposed by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson provoked a sharper tone and warnings that America must act. Though global markets on Tuesday recovered some of the ground they lost in a worldwide slide the day before, politicians from Europe to South America insisted the risk of a further plunge remains high.
...In an unusually blunt statement from the 27-country European Union, EU Commission spokesman Johannes Laitenberger said: "The United States must take its responsibility in this situation, must show statesmanship for the sake of their own country, and for the sake of the world."
Just before meeting with Silva on Tuesday, Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez said he believes a new economic order is in store for the planet.
"What's to blame? Imperialism, the United States, the irresponsibility of the United States government," said the self-avowed socialist and frequent U.S. critic. "From this crisis, a new world has to emerge, and it's a multi-polar world."
China's influence in the outcome of all this could be profound because it is a huge investor in U.S. debt. It is already calling for strict new international regulatory systems to apply to globalized financial markets.
Liu Mingkang, chairman of the Chinese Banking Regulatory Commission, said Saturday before a weeklong bank holiday in China that debt in the United States and elsewhere has risen to dangerous and indefensible levels.
The rest of the world is taking notice. Many newspapers made references Tuesday to China's increasing importance in global finance. In Algeria, a large cartoon on the front page of the newspaper El-Watan showed Uncle Sam at prayer: "Save us!" he says, kneeling before a portrait of China's Mao Zedong...
I disagree with the Mao cartoon. :)
It is the Chinese yelling “save us” to Bush “or you don’t get your allowance.”
It is safe to assume that the bailout of “consumer debt,” car loans and student loans and credit card debt, is being done not to help Americans foremost, but to bailout the derivative instruments in which the debts were bundled, and much owned by foreigners.
I think they will “bail out” once they get our money, maybe still taking some losses.
Then what do we got? $10-15 trillion Bush era debt with no net economic growth.
Yeah, BS, like these countries didn’t participate in the commodity bubble, write trillions in CDS contracts, and lever up their banks too.
Yeah, well, these Latin American “leaders” were happy to ship off their citizens to do their part in the housing bubble and its later collapse. Let them take their citizens back and we’ll start over right after they send back the billions of our dollars wired back to their villages.
Yep, and that idiot Paulson won’t tell us whose loans he is guranteeing with $7 trillion of our grandkids money. He needs to be tarred and feathered.
In reality, it is the other way around.
This was also before they found out that their banks were levered up higher than ours were.
As soon as their bankers came to meetings and presented the situation for their own countries (eg, Germany), the pecksniffing stopped abruptly.
Did the US government give them your money and mine to add to their bad debt reserves? Did you and I agree that this was what the money was for? No, the money was given so the banks could start lending again and get the economy moving.
So is anyone in the government, US Congress, etc going to be punished for this high-grade boondoggle? Obviously not, kids and kidettes. What, you thought America was a democracy under the rule of law? Think again. Its an oligarchy where by various means the rulers get the dumb, mindless public - that's you and me - to sign off on the oligarchs' legitimacy.
We've said this before: the only difference between Moscow and Washington at this time is that in Moscow they don't bother playing games to get the "consent" of their people.
How did the oligarchs fool us this time? Same old story: loud cries of "economy is about to collapse" repeated all over the media, so us poor know-nothings - the public - start screaming for action, so the government within days takes action, and the whole thing is so complex certainly you and I have no clue what's going on. The action seems to help no one but the oligarchs: an estimated $2.4-2.6 trillion later, the US economy is in deflation - prices dropped 1% in October; American unemployment is likely to go up to 8% next year; people are being thrown out of their homes in record numbers; as for the health care crisis, let's not mention that; Goldman Sachs says US economy will contract 5% in 4th Quarter; and the only thing anyone agrees on is that we are by no means anywhere near the end of the bad news.
So the new President is talking about an additional $700-billion stimulus package, which will take the total to $3.1-3.3 trillion and even that people are saying may not work!
Are you and I objecting? Not a bit. You and I are sitting cowed and frightened, saying "do what it takes but save my job". We have given the government a blank check, and lets not be surprised that the government is using the check to enrich the special interests.
Parenthetical note: US Government would have been better off simply sending every woman, man, and child a check for $10,000 to spend as they want. You want spending, you'd have seen some real spending.
That was by far the stupidest thing anyone could have ever done.
As soon as he apologized the whole world wanted a bailout.
Never apologize in earshot of a liberal. Thats day one stuff.
(New mantra during the coming Obamanation Years?)
So are these 'holes really that f'in' stupid, or is there a bigger plan at work?
I bet they’re still mad even though the ONE has been elected.
You sir are absolutely right. I believe it is time to stop all foreign aid. We need to take care of our own people. If the rest of the world is b*tching at us then let them rescue everyone else.
They're all perfectly free to set-up their own trading arrangements and use their own currencies (or set-up a new one).
Except absolutely no one would trust any of them to administer the system as fairly or honestly as we have.
I agree that Heny Paulson should be tar and feathered for bringing gambling into the banking system, at the time when Clinton was President. Bush was not smart enough to understand.
Yes, but just think of what a great deal it was to give away the Panama Canal so Jeemy’s banker buddies could get bailed out. What leadership we’ve had.
Face is world, YOU can’t produce anything but feces and disease. Without the US, you’d fall on each other like starving rats.
>>YOU can’t produce anything but feces and disease.
been shopping in the past twenty/thirty years or so?
Yes, I know, the plethora of US manufactured goods is mind boggling, eh.
And who did they learn it from? And who are they selling it to?
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