No Bailout, It’s For The Children
It’s a time-honored tradition among the proponents of big government to justify any expansion of government power, or any expansion of government spending, with an “it’s for the children” argument. Because where our children are concerned we just can’t say no, right?
Well I’m about to use an “it’s for the children” argument to justify opposing any bailout of the financial industry.
I think the time has come for us to admit that no bailout, no matter how artfully crafted, is going to save this country’s financial industry from a crash. No matter how we do it, if we save these companies from themselves and if we bailout the people who took on more loan obligations than they could pay for, all we’re going to do is reward their irresponsible behavior. And creates an expectation for more bailouts in the future.
Both of which will, in turn, perpetuate the sort of behavior that got us into this mess to begin with.
So I say enough is enough. Let’s let these companies fail instead of bailing out their ridiculous behavior. Let’s face the economic hardships that will go with such a failure now instead postponing it for a few decades so that our children are forced into the same position we are.
Update: Stephen Bainbridge:
Politicians, bloggers, and pundits celebrating the bill’s failure don’t seem to get just how much trouble we’re still in.
No, I’m quite aware of how much trouble we’re in. But I’m not willing to kick that trouble down the road a couple of miles so that my kids end up facing it instead of me.
