We need a Roosevelt, not a Reagan or a Clinton.

[mmonk]

After many years of running up debt and deregulating financial markets while real wages decrease and manufacturing leaves our shores, we are reaping the results of this toxic mix of poorly thought out ideology. Now those who have brought us to this point despite their preaching of government is bad now look to the government to save them. The irony is not lost on thinking people. So what is the solution? Give them tax money and pronounce they are saved? No, it's time to look at real solutions, many that history shows us works, but run counter to the Reagan era thinking on modern economics that regulation is bad.

We must set up a rescue of our system, not a bailout. You can't stop a ship from sinking if all you do is bail water and not fix the hole in the bottom. First off, leave the Treasury Department out of the financial fix. Instead, the Federal Reserve should buy the bad debt and not the Treasury (because the treasury will mean the taxpayer). We need to send in regulators to the investment houses, banks and insurance companies, find out which ones are solvent, close the ones that aren't, and transfer their deposit customers to those that are. That way, money will not flow anymore to failures, but to successes. Then there needs to be an imposition of asset based reserve requirements to reduce risk. Then we can inject capital into those institutions with the best chance of surviving long term more along the lines of what Senator Schumer suggested. This can be achieved by bringing back the Reconstruction Finance Corporation of the Roosevelt era and tasking it with this directive.

Reaganomics brought us the concept of low taxes, decreased regulation, decreased spending on the public, increased spending for the military industrial complex and financing by increasing our debt load. Clinton brought us a variation of the same, but paying for it. However, what we need now is what history has shown us will work and common sense.

My ideas are from the articles "Ending Casino Capitalism" by Robert Pollin, "Bridge Loan to Nowhere" by Thomas Fergusen and Robert Johnson which both appeared in The Nation magazine, October 13th, 2008 edition and history. Comments are welcome.

[lligrd]

1. FDR Gave Us The Blueprint

Can Obama put it into action?

[mmonk]

2. I hope so. But I don't know how much influence

people like Rubin have on him. That is my concern.

[lligrd]

3. Mine Too. Plus, It Will Take An Awful Lot Of Grit To Gut The

system and stand up to those who will be adamantly against such a plan. But, if America is to be saved, it must be done.

[NightWatcher]

4. we cant go backwards. This challenge is similar to others, but I'll take an Obama vs McSame

sure there are hints of the 1930's and 1860's and even 1770's, but this is the late 2000's. Things have changed and the world has changed. We are all more interconnected then I think anyone in their right mind would like. When Asia coughs, we get the sniffles and so on. I'm afraid that there's no "silver bullet" to solving our problems. I'd rather have someone who can help us deal with disaster and try to fix things then someone who does not acknowledge that things are bad in the first place. The McSame meme of "cut taxes" isnt going to help. We're going to have to pay for things and taxes and tariffs are the only ways to create income. We cannot afford tariffs in this global economy, so let's hope for smarter tax policies.

[mmonk]

5. All problems are not taxed based though they can add to it.

Though spending and debt load are part of the problem such as Asia now holding us by the neck indicates as a result of our deficit philosophy, the integrity of the machinery is the same regardless of being intertwined with foreign economies. Our banking and financial system doesn't need to be mixed up in speculative paper or the derivative market because then, throwing money at it won't solve it.

[Thothmes]

6. Agreed, unfortunately, I do not see one on the horizon

that can provide that type of leadership and foresigth.

[mmonk]

7. Maybe we should demand it.

[Captain Hilts]

8. You asked, here are two!

[mmonk]

9. Indeed. Have they been reincarnated by chance?