The country continues to scratch its head, wondering why the stock market continues to tank. All this, despite the federal government's assurances that they know what's best for the ailing economy and their resulting drastic measures will fix what's ailing us. We've spent millions to prop up failing institutions, passed a $700 billion dollar "bail-out" plan and are now buying chunks of the banking industry. With all of this tax payer money being flung around, why isn't Wall Street getting the picture and catapulting into recovery?

 

I have a theory on that. It's the socialism, stupid! Wall Street represents capitalism. The businesses and their investors are motivated by capitalist principles. The so-called solutions being ram rodded down the throats of Americans by the Bush administration, Congress and an assortment of their bureucratic cronies all amount to one thing - a big socialist power grab. How could this possibly be welcomed by Wall Street or Main Street? How could this possibly soothe the anxieties of American society? Socialism is a frightening prospect for multiple reasons, but in short, it has proven itself to be a failed system. It's not exactly the sort of thing to wager your economic future on.

 

Looking at the $700 billion dollar bail-out fiasco, we saw that Americans overwhelmingly disapproved. Still, our faithfully serving representatives chose to barrel ahead with this reckless venture at tax payer expense. Now that they've decided to get into the banking business, we see that it will require strong arming the banking institutions. You see, banks such as Wells Fargo don't want to be bought, in whole or part, by the government. Does that matter to our government? Apparently not. Again, they know what's best and it is becoming clear that they will march forward with their corrupt socialist take over, regardless of the protests from American businesses and American citizens.

 

Of course, there is another element at play, perhaps, that has more to do with common sense. Even if Americans weren't concerned about the current frenzy of socialist activity in Washington, along with the daily panic mongering, our government isn't exactly viewed these days with a lot of confidence. The media has been quite helpful in reminding us that President Bush suffers from historically low approval ratings. It is also true, though less focused on, that Congress has an even lower rate of approval. By and large, we don't like 'em and we don't trust 'em. Oh, yeah. There's also that little matter of Congress being primarily responsible for most of the specific issues that have lead to our current crisis. All things considered, most Americans would probably prefer to let the market sort itself out, rather than have Congress intervene. The socialism may simply be the bitter cherry on top of the big crap sundae we've been served. Or is it the other way around? Does it really matter? We seem faced with recession or depression at the rate we're going, but I wouldn't count on any confession.

 

A confession of what, you might ask. Well, there are nagging questions in the back of my mind that beg to be answered. Why does our government create problems in order to swoop in to the rescue as our self-appointed saviours? Is it a matter of self-serving political maneuvering? If so, I can't begin to describe how twisted that is. Given the types of solutions they are laying on the table, though, the whole game reeks of something more sinister than every day politics. Many of the key players in this debacle are not ecomomic dimwits, so why are they choosing this high stakes, socialist route that is clearly and vocally being opposed by Wall Street and Main Street alike? I'm sorry...the desperate times call for desperate measures response doesn't cut it for me on this one. What is the real end game here? Traditionally, I'm not given to conspiracy theories, but the air is smelling increasingly fishy.

 

Whatever the ultimate outcome of our present economic mess and whatever the motivations of our pathetic elected officials, one thing seems clear on this particular evening. In the figurative sense, Wall Street doesn't seem to be buying what Washington is selling. In the literal sense, Washington is buying what Wall Street is selling, whether we like it or not.