The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 seemed to be the dawn of a new era. A few intellectuals announced this. It sounded good. But 9-11 overturned this optimism as the new century began, and the crash ended the decade in waves of bankruptcies and default.
Confidence is cumulative. It adds up over long periods of time. To reverse it takes bad news for many years. People do not want to abandon hope in what they regard as the central institution. Yet it is clear to most people that the government is no longer functioning coherently. There was great hope in Obama, which is indicative of widespread foolishness regarding the power of Presidents, a foolishness that extends back to the New Deal.
The government is becoming irrational, as top-down, tax-subsidized operations always do. The government suffers few negative sanctions for its blunders. It bails itself out, just as it bails out its support institutions, the banks. The public has no systematic explanation for this irrationality, but the fact can no longer be concealed.
The government is concealing from the public the fact that we are bankrupt. There will be a price to pay for this deception.
No comments:
Post a Comment