ONE FINAL NOTE:

I just wanted to say that this is my final Pop Politico column for Popdose. Thanks so much for reading this little slice of commentary for the past year. I think there has been some lively discussion in the comments section, and it's clear the readers here have a passion for politics — and are articulate about it. I'm not leaving Popdose (I'll still be doing the weekly Mix Six and contributing to staff features) but, for me, this column has reached the end.

Thanks again for reading!

Ted

What I mean by “free lunch” is that during the campaign, Obama promised many, many things, and claimed they would be paid for. Everyone with an IQ above single digits knew in their heart of hearts it could not be paid for. Hence the cognitive dissonance of believing in and voting for the promise, the hope, knowing the means to make good on that promise did not exist.

Your point about the unpredictability of the future is well-taken. However it is undeniable that a dollar I loan to the US Government to pay for these wonderful stimulus “investments” (like a $150 million face lift for the Smithsonian) is a dollar not invested in corporate bonds, not deposited in a bank to shore up their balance sheets, not spent at the local Best Buy. The amount of money the government is trying to borrow is causing a giant sucking sound. What goes one place cannot go elsewhere. And we wonder why corporations are having difficulty in borrowing at reasonable rates? And of course that which is not borrowed is printed, diminishing the value of every dollar you have in your pocket or bank account. (Plus, if you divide the cost of the bailout by the number of jobs claimed to be created, it will cost about $200,000 per job. So there is an efficiency question here as well. How much friggin' administrative cost is involved in creating these jobs?) Obama has said that long term we have to be more responsible. Good grief!!! Why not start today?

I don't want to make this too long, but can't neglect mentioning again the dirty little secret that Obama will be bailing out the big money guys far more (in dollar terms) than his plan bails out the middle and lower classes. At the same time he is bashing the management of Wall Street and bankers whose firms received public assisstance, his Treasury Secretary is working out a multi-trillion dollar rescue for those same firms which, if successful, will revive the stocks, and thus the fortunes, of those same management fatcats he is now shaming for their high bonuses. Cynical politics at its worst. Yah, read all about it:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/06/smick.ba…

“Essentially, the administration is offering the bankers an implicit deal. Even though senior executives from banks receiving government assistance will face limits on their salaries, the value of their personal shareholdings in their companies — where for most executives the big money is — could potentially be restored if bank stocks rise in response to the bailout. In many cases, those shareholdings are now all but worthless paper.”

The Obama scare tactics claim of Armageddon and death to America if we don't do anything, I think doom is more likely to come about if this horrible thing gets passed. He's 3 weeks into his presidency and he may well be sealing his legacy for good right now, and it's probably not gonna be a good one unless that bill gets changed for the better at the last minute.