OPINION: Bailout alternatives -- what do you think?

I've been thinking about what we might do as a nation with a $700 billion commitment, if we decide not to bailout Wall Street. Think of the positive impact on our credit markets, the world's view of us, if we were to invest in our future rather than cleaning up our past. If the quagmire in Washington is primariliy about restoring confidence and trust, would this work? What are your ideas? Please post as comments your suggests for the appropriate use of $700 billion in borrowed funds.

Here's my suggestion:

1) $200 billion into a renewables trust fund. The only thing the money can be used for is for R&D and opeartion of non-fossil fuel renewal-energy projects. Rustbucket America - the auto industry, would retool to meet the demand.

2) $200 billion -- To fix America's crumbling road, bridge and **rail** infrastructure and build out a high-speed interurban rail network in congested auto corridors. The construction industry would boom!

3) $200 billion -- To invest in Teach for America, building new schools and retraining teachers to be able to teach for the 21st century.

4) $100 billion -- To create a system of stipends for health care for America's poor - conditioned on reaching a national consensus on a bifurcated health-care system -- allow the private system to continue to operate, but end private health insurance and establish a single-payer system, nationally administered. The same companies that now offer health insurance -- the Aetna's, the BC/BS's of the world, could become contractors to the government running all the paperwork. But it would be coordinated.

SENDING EMAIL TO U.S. Rep. John W. Olver: The correct address is:
olver@hr.house.gov

-- bill densmore / williamstown, mass. 

Comments

[James Mok]

Alternative 1: Chapter 11
Alternative 2: debt restructing such has conversion to equity or exchange face value to warrent

Better for tax payers but not as attractive to executives of financial institutions.

read this:
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/eo20081001a3.html

[Sam]

Someone said to me when debating the bailout plan... "Why not give 700bn dollars to the taxpayers directly?".

After thinking about it... That would fix the problem quickly.

Loans/debt would be paid off.
Banks would get capital.
Investments would go up... more capital to those entitities.
Consumer confidence would be restored.
Houses would be bought and sold.

Why not?

[Daniel Gendron]

Bill,

I don't disagree with what you would like to accomplish if this money were available for such purposes. All of it long overdue. However, it's like when you're on a plane and you suddenly need the air mask. You struggle for a moment with the decision of whose mask goes on first, yours or your child's, who is next to you. Obviously, you quickly choose yourself so that you may assist your child.

Now, the bad guys on Wall Street should be reconciled to justice ASAP, but in the meantime the credit mechanisms need to be freed. Still, the problem is even bigger than this. We are borrowing for a war, and god knows how we'll really pay for this (I assume through taxing the middle, and printing a little money and taxing the middle again in this way - because 40 cents on a dollar is optimistic).

The larger issue of the rogue bankers, investment people, and the like is in many ways miniscule to what really ails our country. It is the pervasive idea that this behavior is tolerable by those that do it, and by their keen manipulation of the masses that are oblivious to it and thereby allow it.

Also, the middle too has dumb-downed our society (for many reasons, not withstanding funding and other basics), and by doing so again allowing the top ruling class to pillage as they will. It is such a vicious cycle. They fed to us all of the plastic creature comforts and junk we could import, and allowed us to buy the SUVs and the flatscreens and so on... numbing our minds to the rest of the world so that all of the middle's gains over the last 40 to 50 years were taken back. But what was also taken back by creating this numbness was the masses ability to empathize with the rest of the planet, and we became sorry sad gluttons.

If we survive this crisis, I doubt America will ever be the same and I would bet that we will see the further disintegration of America as it becomes violently factious and dies under its own weight because the toys and the numbing consumerism won't work anymore. People that don't know this now, will know eventually that it is has all been a lie - and has been for some time; and those that have truly labored under the lie and have know it all along, will rise up and each will join each other. Unfortunately, they too will die under their own weight because they have been robbed of the tools to fight this: Education, a sense of history, a sense of proportion, a sense of empathy for the rest of mankind, and a willingness to turn from consumerism and stupid blind nationalism.

This has been a major blunder by the cynics, be they called Republicans or Democrats.

As I told my sons, "Hang on, this is gonna be a bumpy ride."

Dan Gendron

[Bill Densmore]

Steve Fogel, of Williamstown, emailed this comment:

I appreciate your letter and have serious doubts about bailing out anyone. I also do not have an answer for what to do to get credit markets unstuck and
your plan does not address this at all. I am extremely concerned about bailing out banks, etc who acted irresponsibly with regulators and a government either asleep or actively cheering them on. I also see individuals and an economy in need of a monetary system where credit is available to credit worthy parties at reasonable rates and I also see a need to help people who were taken advantage of by the lenders etc.

I am sorry--I see a need for a bailout along the lines that Paul Krugman suggested in his Times piece on Monday. I would love to see more money in social programs but I see a responsible bailout as a first step to getting the economy and financial system in a position to go forward. A healthy economy and sound tax policy--both missing for way to long--are the first steps for sustaining the kinds of things that you and I support--I would add that ending the war in Iraq and avoiding wars of choice in the future are also part of this.

-- Steve Fogel, Williamstown