Subsidizing Bad Decisions (Thomas Sowell)

GOPUSA ^ | March 10, 2009 | Thomas Sowell

[<1/1,000,000th%]

Just another great article from Mr. Sowell.

[Swordfished]

The first bank bailout under Paulson and Bush had no strings attached. Banks could do whatever they wanted with their free money and didn’t have to report back.

To imply that liberalism is the only problem here is intellectually dishonest.

Bush set the precedent.

[syriacus]

Sowell: The one person toward whom there is no compassion is the taxpayer.

Yes!

Time to dust off that sentiment the leftists love to use. Taxpayers should carry signs reading:

No justice
No peace

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

Here's an oldie but a goody....slightly modified for modern audiences.

Freepers over the age of 40 will (should) remember Mom or Dad telling you the original version of this little bedtime story;

The Little Red Hen.

The little red hen called all of her Democrat neighbors together and said,
If we plant this wheat, we shall have bread to eat.  Who will help me plant
it?"
                 "Not I," said the cow.
                 "Not I," said the duck.
                 "Not I," said the pig.
                 "Not I," said the goose.

"Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen, and so she did.


The wheat grew very tall and ripened into golden grain.  "Who will help me
reap my wheat?" asked the little red hen.

                "Not I," said the duck.
                "Out of my classification," said the pig.
                "I'd lose my seniority," said the cow.
                "I'd lose my unemployment compensation," said the goose.

"Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen, and so she did.


At last it came time to bake the bread? "Who will help me bake the bread?"
asked the little red hen.

     "That would be overtime for me," said the cow.
     "I'd lose my welfare benefits," said the duck.
     "I'm a dropout and never learned how," said the pig.
     "If I'm to be the only helper, that's discrimination,"  said the
goose.

"Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen.


She baked five loaves and held them up for all of her neighbors to see.
They wanted some and, in fact, demanded a share.  But the little red hen
said, "No, I shall eat all five loaves."

             "Excess profits!" cried the cow. (Nancy Pelosi)
             "Capitalist leech!" screamed the duck. (Barbara Boxer)
             "I demand equal rights!" yelled the goose.  (Jesse Jackson)
             The pig just grunted in disdain.  (Ted Kennedy)

And they all painted 'Unfair!' picket signs and marched around and around
the little red hen, shouting obscenities.

Then the farmer (Obama) came.  He said to the little red hen, "You must not
be so greedy."

"But I earned the bread," said the little red hen.

"Exactly," said Barack the farmer.  "That is what makes our free enterprise
system so wonderful.  Anyone in the barnyard can earn as much as he wants.
But under our modern government regulations, the productive workers must
divide the fruits of their labor with those who are lazy and idle."

And they all lived happily ever after, including the little red hen, who
smiled and clucked, "I am grateful, for now I truly understand."

But her neighbors became quite disappointed in her.  She never again baked
bread because she joined the 'party' and got her bread free.  And all the
Democrats smiled. 'Fairness' had been established.

Individual initiative had died, but nobody noticed;  perhaps no one
cared...so long as there was free bread that 'the rich' were paying for.


                       EPILOGUE
Bill Clinton is getting $12 million for his memoirs.
Hillary got $8 million for hers.

That's $20 million for the memories from two people, who for eight years,
repeatedly testified, under oath, that they couldn't remember anything.

IS THIS A GREAT BARNYARD OR WHAT?

[fnord]

“Affordable housing produced by market forces provides no benefit to politicians and has no attraction for them. “

money quote

[Hoffer Rand]

Personally, I want a sign (button pin) like hilliary gave the Russian foreign minister. Somebody should start a small business. They could probably make a tidy profit selling those to fed up taxpayers who have, in fact, been “overcharged” Also makes a nice statement about amateur hour in the executive branch.

[MHGinTN]

It is so nice to read the clear explanation of the current debacle. So, when will black Americans and liberal white Americans start listening to such common sense? ... Answer, they never will, it doesn’t sit well with what the democrap party ahs been selling/feeding to them for lo these several deacades.

[MrB]

Not to quibble too much, but to imply Bush was a core value conservative “is intellectually dishonest”.

[SuziQ]

Bump for later reading!

[syriacus]

They could probably make a tidy profit selling those to fed up taxpayers who have, in fact, been “overcharged”

Good one!!

[Albion Wilde]

Don’t look now- but people in New Orleans affected by Katrina are still getting FREE housing on the taxpayer nickle. The National Guard troops were finally pulled out on March 1, 2009.

I was against the big government payout to the 9/11 victims, especially in view that there were so many private donations. We're just down the tubes.

[bluerose]

Thanks for the ping. Right on as usual. Mr. Sowell needs to replace geithner.

[aggie21]

“Mr. Sowell needs to replace geithner.”

I would rather him replace Obama, but I’m dreaming.

[Swordfished]

Not to quibble too much, but to imply Bush was a core value conservative “is intellectually dishonest”.

Agreed. But I'd like to start seeing any attack on Obama regarding the bank bailouts prefaced with an attack on Bush.

[Gene Eric]

Figured I’d end the evening with a little Sowell searching ...

>> Even in an era of much-ballyhooed “change,” the government cannot eliminate sadness.

Anything that offsets natural consequence is indebted to reality. Eventually the real world will demand payment. It may not be called in our time, but most definitely for the children we leave behind.