Wishing for a Democratic Congress? Be careful what you wish for

[wyldwolf]

I've always believed the best satire should make you stop and wonder if it really is satire. You be the judge:

http://nymag.com/news/businessfinance/bottomline/19385/index.html

[redqueen]

1. What the...

This IS satire, right?

"Screwing" Big Pharma by making them compete for business?

:wtf: is this $#*@?

[wyldwolf]

2. yes, I believe it is satire. Makes you think about it, though

[redqueen]

4. How do you mean?

If you mean it makes you think about it in the, "It's about friggin time!" sense, then yes.

[wyldwolf]

6. just the way it is written. Its satire, but it isn't obviously satire

IMO.

[redqueen]

7. Definitely not obvious.

Sadly, that is. So much corporate, right-wing crud flaunted in the whored-out media that it could very well be written in earnest.

"gounges" in quotes... the nerve!

[Wickerman]

3. wow, I wondered a lot in that one

and then decided it wasn't.

[alvarezadams]

5. Good stuff

If it ISN'T satire, what a sad state of affairs for the right. Utterly amoral bastards!

[Strawman]

8. That isn't satire

It's just an honest, unashamedly greedy bastard arguing that the Democrats are going too hurt the markets by being too hard to big business. It's ridiculous because even if the implications he predicts from Democratic fiscal policy were likely (why that's bullshit is another post), Congressional Dems are not going to be able to do all that much without a veto proof majority (that they won't have) and that's assuming they will even have the spine to attempt to truly take on corporate interests.

Cramer is a bunghole.

[Strawman]

9. OK. Never mind. I'm completely wrong.

Wow.

[darkism]

10. Clearly satire...and good to hear.

Keep in mind this is the "Mad Money" guy. It's good to see him taking jabs at the ** junta...not many financial guys would dare do such a thing.

[welshTerrier2]

11. Democrats pursuing a populist agenda?

it's an interesting article ... yeah, it's satire ... the question i have is what exactly was being satirized?

on the surface, it seems like the author was poking fun at the billionaire class who might be oh-so-worried about a liberal, Democratic tide that could threaten their corporate regime ... Exxon-Mobil could be squashed; future mergers and acquisitions all but impossible ... and those poor CEO's could all be at risk ...

what a nightmare Democrats regaining power could be for America's ruling class ... the "superficial satire" in the article seems to focus on the poor little dears who would suffer unimaginable harm if Democrats seized control ...

but, and it's not at all clear this was the author's "hidden intent", it seems to me a perhaps unintended satire (if such a thing is possible), was the premise that the Democrats would bring into power with them an aggressive agenda to make big business bend to their will ... are Democrats campaigning today on any of that agenda?

i've heard the issue about "no Federal discounts" under the new Medicare bill raised ... i've heard talk about "windfall profits taxes" raised regarding Big Oil ... but i don't hear a comprehensive message from the Democratic Party about the abuses of republican-sponsored free market capitalism ... Democrats make no statements about how America's foreign policy is largely driven by greed ... there is precious little if any talk about national policy catering to special interests like Big Oil at the expense of the genuine national interest ... there certainly has been little or no discussion from prominent Democrats making the case that the invasion of Iraq was primarily, or at least largely, driven by greedy commercial interests including both Big Oil and the Military-Industrial complex ... those are seen as "lefty" arguments and "lefty" jargon and the Democratic Party has shown virtually no interest in investing in that approach ...

so, while the article does a great job satirizing the imagined suffering of America's billionaire class, i wonder whether the real satire is that Democrats are not really going to pursue the feared agenda at all ...

[fencesitter]

12. Gee, these Democrats are going to ruin my stock portfolio...

Too bad I don't have one! Oh, my retirement savings are in the stock market? When did that happen? My college savings? OMG, stock market too? My whole life policy? The stock market again? Holy crap, I better vote Republican, the Democrats will ruin me! How did someone like me end up in the stock market? Hmmm.

[ProSense]

13. If this is satire, it's a poor attempt!

I tried hard on first read to find the satire. There is so much hyperbole mixed in with GOP talking points and market advice that it's hard to discern the sarcasm.

What was the point of this? Look at how many people here are having a hard time accepting it as satire. People are going to read this article (and I don't care if it's New York Magazine's audience) and not get it.

The question is what is this going to make the reader stop and think about?