There is no question Congress is going to pass a bail out of some sort. The best we can hope for, as the Economist, put it last year, is that “money should go first, and perhaps only, to those who can show they were defrauded or deceived.” As we all know, though, hope is not a strategy.
Instead, we will see Congress rush to pass a bill that will help the stock market and the money lenders in the short-term and wreck the economy in the mid-term. Much like the Patriot Act, or any piece of voluminous legislation passed in a crisis, the bailout also includes lots of hidden goodies that have nothing to do with helping the economy.
Among these is a mental health parity requirement that would increase the cost of insurance for working families and others. Now, I know economic ruin can be stressful, but this is a bit of a stretch.
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