Re: Why Can't The Majority Act?

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Karl Auerbach <karl () cavebear com>
Date: September 26, 2008 7:41:06 PM EDT
To: dave () farber net
Cc: ip <ip () v2 listbox com>
Subject: Re: [IP] Re:   Why Can't The Majority Act?

David Farber wrote:

> *From: *Ken Deifik <kenneth.d () roadrunner com

> It's already become a populist issue among know-nothing voters:

Know nothing is a rather broad brush.

I'm not an wizard on economic issues.  Nor am I an expert in medicine.

But once upon a time I had a substantial spinal injury and it was  
recommended by my doctors that I try acupuncture to see if it might  
reduce some of the ancillary pain.

So I went to Acupuncturist A.  She started sticking pins into my toes  
and uttering what sounded like gibberish about how the aura of my  
shakra is focused around my foot and that the energy would emanate to  
my spine.  Sounded like nonsense.  She accomplished nothing except to  
leave me with sore feet.

Acupuncturist B was rather more scientific - he admitted that he  
didn't know how the pins affected things but that he had learned  
through experience (and training) that certain locations, usually near  
the affected area, do produce relief.  Much to my surprise his  
treatment worked.

The point I'm trying to make is this: even though we "know nothings"  
may not comprehend the deep meaning of economic processes, we do have  
common sense.  And we can distinguish between so-called experts who  
themselves don't have a clue and those who, even if they don't  
comprehend everything, do have more experience, knowledge, and wisdom  
than we have.

So far the bailout seems to be more like the person who tried to solve  
my spinal pain by manipulating metaphysical auras and shakras in my  
toes.

If the issue is mortgages that people are having trouble paying or are  
finding that they owe more than the home is worth then the common  
sense notion of proximity suggests that the cure should be applied  
near that problem and not at the very remote site of the speculative  
firms that have bought financial instruments N levels removed from the  
house and the person living in that house.

What I want is a clear explanation why the best method of cure is to  
stick pins in a part of our economic system that is so far from the  
causative event.

Absent that kind of clear explanation is it any wonder that I am  
skeptical?

By-the-way, it seems that in the race to pour money onto the financial  
system we've forgotten that we continue to flush cubic money down the  
toilet of a couple of wars.  Perhaps we should say "our problems at  
home are big enough that we have to stop solving other peoples'  
problems for a while."

                --karl--




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