[reaganaut1]

The politicians are shooting the messenger. When you are borrowing 40 cents of each dollar you spend, you are NOT AAA.

[Opinionated Blowhard]

This is like a junkie being angry at his family for not bailing him out of the debts he ran up on drugs. The answer is crystal clear—cut spending—yet there is no political will to do it.

[Hang'emAll]

several lawmakers have publicly questioned whether the ratings agencies have the competence to evaluate the country’s finances................

I think the S&P people are terrorists questioning our lawmakers absolute knowledge and their views should not be given equal time on the MSM. /sarc

[Conservativegreatgrandma]

This should be looked at as a gift and an opportunity to make some real deep cuts and blame it on Moodys. It’s time for entire departments to disappear. We’ll be better off without the dept. of ed for starters.

[SkyPilot]

Anger Over Credit Rating Resurfaces in Washington

I am in deep fear of where we are right now. I believe the stock market may crash on Monday. I know what the downgrade means - the cost of financing our soon to be $15 Trillion Dollar debt is going to eat up a much larger portion of our Federal budget.

There is a lot of blame to go around. The "Prescription Drug Benefit" that GW Bush and a Republican Congress pushed through was criminal - it has cost us dearly.

But, the majority of the blame goes to the Democrats and those who are greedy entitlement collectors, lazy welfare breeders, 99ner unemployment check direct deposit queens, Food Stamp schemers, and all the rest.

Entitlements are breaking our back, and no one will do anything about it.

[EBH]

but lawmakers struggled to understand the agency’s views.

The republicans and tea party understood...the democrats so very obviously didn't.

Now the other line about the politics of the matter...the S&P correctly identifies the “The gulf between the political parties,” as the reason for the default. The political party in the majority, wielding control, is not the party that understands what must be done. It is the lawmakers who struggled to understand that are in charge. And like petulant pre-teens they don't understand the words, No mo' money.

[factoryrat]

Yep, pretty much sums it up. Look for some retaliation against the ratings agencies by the feds in the not-too-distant future.

[Mobties]

I’m reminded of a particular Chic Young’s comic strip, “Blondie” — Blondie Bumstead is incredulous that she could be overdrawn at the bank when she still has ten checks left in her checkbook.

Sorry, I couldn’t find the cartoon.

[rodguy911]

The NYT is obviously on the way down.

They know better about everything as do many of their readers. I guess its beyond their realm to try and understand that when you spend 300 billion every month and only take in 180-200 things will crash.

It's just not pc enough or Gucci enough for them to comprehend.

I hope they understand what it means when people stop reading their biased rag, hopefully that will touch home.

[Paladin2]

It’s interesting that the b0z0s in DC are more attentive to the ratings agencies than to the People.

[Track9]

“The gulf between the political parties,” is a BS explanation. That would mean if there wasn't any 'gulf' and the Dims could spend indefinitely, S&P would be okay with that..? I don't think so.. and it's not what the S&P guys were saying either.

We all know what the problem is.. and it ain't the people wanting to cut spending.

[denydenydeny]

lawmakers struggled to understand the agency’s views.

But not too hard, apparently.

[oblomov]

Be Angry At The Sun

That public men publish falsehoods
Is nothing new. That America must accept,
Like the historical republics, corruption and empire
Has been known for years.

Be angry at the sun for setting
If these things anger you. Watch the wheel slope and turn,
They are all bound on the wheel, these people, those warriors.
This republic, Europe, Asia.

Observe them gesticulating,
Observe them going down. The gang serves lies, the passionate
Man plays his part; the cold passion for truth
Hunts in no pack.

You are not Catullus, you know,
To lampoon these crude sketches of Caesar. You are far
From Dante’s feet, but even farther from his dirty
Political hatreds.

Let boys want pleasure, and men
Struggle for power, and women perhaps for fame,
And the servile to serve a Leader and the dupes to be duped.
Yours is not theirs.

-Robinson Jeffers (1941)

[Eye of Unk]

Its the failed ideology of an Islamofascist.

[Oldeconomybuyer]

[livius]

In its announcement Friday night, S.& P. cited the political gridlock in Washington during the debt limit debate as a main reason for its decision. “The gulf between the political parties,” S.& P. said, had reduced its confidence in the government’s ability to manage its finances.

Nobody on the thread seems to be reading the article. The implication is not that the downgrade was caused by the actual situation or even the future projections, but because they believe the US has reached a political impasse.

This, of course, will be used to blame conservatives for the whole thing. After all, "compromise" always means that conservatives have to give up their ideas and accept whatever the left wants.

[Erik Latranyi]

If liberals had full control, S&P would be shut down for their actions.

Those that do not agree with liberals must be destroyed.

[bert]

-——LOUISE, JULIE, GRETCHEN -——

How many presstitute girls does it take to write a NY Slimes story.

One to pick up the John, one to pay for the room and one to screw him

[trebb]

...several lawmakers have publicly questioned whether the ratings agencies have the competence to evaluate the country’s finances, and whether it was appropriate for them to be so deeply involved in discussions of fiscal politics.

Gee - they think the People are too stupid to understand a few simple concepts and even agencies that make their living doing so are too stupid. That settles it - the politicians are all freakin' geniuses and everyone is just plain stoooopid...