President Obama

[GrandOldTeam]

Absolutely agree, although cant comment on Jesse Jackson.

 

[The Esk]

Depends how you look at it doesn't it? I'm sure the actions taken by Gordon Brown will go some way to providing short-term relief, but have they provided a deterrant for banks not to do this again?

I would rather there were short-term failures if it meant that the finance sector took a bloody long look at itself and ensured this sort of thing didn't happen again.

People have to appreciate that there are consequences to ones actions, and that applies to the public as well as bankers.

I'm looking at it from the point of view of the whole economy. The economy cannot function without a fully operational banking system.

Failure to support the banks would have resulted in complete failure of the banking system - an economic tsunami.

Deterrent can now be provided by (i) much firmer regulation by the FSA, and (ii) the government being active shareholders in creating suitable risk policies and risk management and (iii) Shareholder action against undue/inappropriate risk taking.

There is also of course Legislation which could be used against bank Directors, and perhaps shareholders may wish to look at legal actions against their Directors for losses created through their behaviour.

The consequences of the "bail-out" are huge - higher taxes in the future, less funding for public services, increased Government borrowings, a less competitive banking sector to name but a few. However the consequences of doing nothing are even greater.

 

[Nebbiolo]

well a few years ago a majority of people bought cliff richard :mistletoe and wine and made it xmas number 1.

that was an example of how the majority isnt always right.
this election is another.

hate to say it but americans have voted for someone who really has little experience and has too much work to do , the bar has been raised and im adamant he will fall on his face.

he hasnt run a state , he hasnt even run a company.

i see this more of an anti bush election rather than an election for the best candidate.

obama is a typical all skirt no knickers politician and once the daydreaming public and obama get over there honeymoon period cracks will appear fast .

i shall stand buy to say i told you so.

ps after watching plenty of interviews with the man , ive come to the conclusion that civil rights campaigner jesse jackson is nothing more than a racist son of a bitch.
the man is less about equal rights and seems more hell bent on black supremacy.soemone should tell him that racism goes both ways and isnt a black only monopoly.

Everything that Obama has done, he has been successful at. I see no reason why he won't make a good president. Have a look at his history and then come back and claim that this is a man without the ability to run America (and let's set the bar at the level of other presidents).

 

[uknightbreed]

The consequences of the "bail-out" are huge - higher taxes in the future, less funding for public services, increased Government borrowings, a less competitive banking sector to name but a few. However the consequences of doing nothing are even greater.

great point there.

for me this was the killer wether mcain or obama won.
the steps that any new president will have to take to solve and bankroll the salvation of the financial system will be make the president and his party unpopular in the short term.

by the time things have stabilised (through higher taxes, cutting public spending etc) the damge to the relationship between the voters and obama will already have been done.

by the time 'president' palin (lol) and the republicans get the power back , obama will be nothing more than a memory of a president who taxed his voters to the hilt imo.

obviosly mcain would have faced the same problems , but he has the experience to cope , obama hasnt.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

So we have a financial sector that is in trouble as a result of borrowing too much and lending that money to people ill equipped to pay it back. And to rescue that sector the government borrows money it doesn't have to lend it to people ill equipped to pay it back. I'm sorry but that is lunacy. We're in this mess because our capital markets have been built on debt rather than savings. Contrast us to the Chinese who have vast surplusses and are in a position to buy up the world should they wish.

We're in an environment where house prices are massively over inflated. This was fine when they kept rising, people kept borrowing against their homes, even when they couldn't afford it. They lived beyond their means. Now the government is trying to prop up house prices that don't need propping up. We desperately need a correction. People need to start living within their means not borrowing even more.

As it is the current climate will punish exactly the people it should be encouraging, ie those that were prudent enough to save money. This bailout will cause inflation that will wittle away at their savings, which incidently we should be encouraging to bolster banks deposits. But no, the system is in such a bloody mess that the government are desperate for us to borrow again so we can start spending again. No doubt with its head in the sand it'll act surprised when the situation comes around to bite it on the arse again.

 

[Nebbiolo]

great point there.

for me this was the killer wether mcain or obama won.
the steps that any new president will have to take to solve and bankroll the salvation of the financial system will be make the president and his party unpopular in the short term.

by the time things have stabilised (through higher taxes, cutting public spending etc) the damge to the relationship between the voters and obama will already have been done.

by the time 'president' palin (lol) and the republicans get the power back , obama will be nothing more than a memory of a president who taxed his voters to the hilt imo.

obviosly mcain would have faced the same problems , but he has the experience to cope , obama hasnt.

Obama will be surrounded by many capable politicians, all of whom will have an input into policy. Obama will no doubt keep key individuals very close to him. That is why inexperience isn't a bad thing. It allows government to be more about party consent and unity rather than one man's vision (or woman, as was the case with Thatcher). He'll be fine and I trust the American public is fully aware that due to the current economic crisis, Obama might be forced to do things that they won't necessarily like.

 

[uknightbreed]

Everything that Obama has done, he has been successful at. I see no reason why he won't make a good president. Have a look at his history and then come back and claim that this is a man without the ability to run America (and let's set the bar at the level of other presidents).

good luck to him and i wish him well , but running america and being an example to the world is a major task. his charactar is perfect for president but i just dont think he has the know how or minerals for when the going gets tough and difficult decisions have to be made.

the big question i have to ask is ...will he be assasinated ?
there is a lot of comparisons to jfk with obamas career and an interview i heard last night from moorehouse college(is that the right college name) implied that a lot of people fear this could happen.

ps this race issue confuses me , for the first black president he is rather white isnt he ? ive seen darker milky bars ! isnt he mixed race ? ie black and white
and if thats the case why is he classed as a black president ?

 

[The Esk]

Bruce, it was the failure of Governments to act in a concerted manner post the Banking crisis of the late 1920's that resulted in the Depression of the 1930's, which ultimately led to WW II.

No elected Government would allow that to happen again.

The result of all of this is that Wall Street and UK PLC will ultimately be owned by investors in China, India, and the Arab States (Barclays for example). Regrettable yes, but the hope is that it is the least worst option.

 

[Nebbiolo]

good luck to him and i wish him well , but running america and being an example to the world is a major task. his charactar is perfect for president but i just dont think he has the know how or minerals for when the going gets tough and difficult decisions have to be made.

the big question i have to ask is ...will he be assasinated ?
there is a lot of comparisons to jfk with obamas career and an interview i heard last night from moorehouse college(is that the right college name) implied that a lot of people fear this could happen.

ps this race issue confuses me , for the first black president he is rather white isnt he ? ive seen darker milky bars ! isnt he mixed race ? ie black and white
and if thats the case why is he classed as a black president ?

He's mixed race; that is, his father is a black Kenyan and mother a white American.

 

[Bundy]

The end is nigh. You heard it here first.

 

[Sqweeck]

He's mixed race; that is, his father is a black Kenyan and mother a white American.

But it's a fair point. It's momentous because he's mixed race but to claim him as "black" is a bit of a stretch.....you could equally as truthfully call him "white" but you'd get jumped on from a great height if you did (Lewis Hamilton ditto).

Said this before but I think the lack of experience argument is a bit daft, it's not as if he's going to make any decision on anything without it first going through a raft of experts and advisors.

Personally the older I get the more I move to the left so I'm delighted (and a little surprised) America has voted for him.

 

[Nebbiolo]

But it's a fair point. It's momentous because he's mixed race but to claim him as "black" is a bit of a stretch.....you could equally as truthfully call him "white" but you'd get jumped on from a great height if you did (Lewis Hamilton ditto).

Said this before but I think the lack of experience argument is a bit daft, it's not as if he's going to make any decision on anything without it first going through a raft of experts and advisors.

Personally the older I get the more I move to the left so I'm delighted (and a little surprised) America has voted for him.

That's funny, because the older I get, the more I move to the right. I've gone from socialist, Marxist, communist (14-20) to anarchist (20-25), back to socialist (25-33) and on to becoming a kind of centre-ground, left-leaning liberal, where I think I will stay.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

Bruce, it was the failure of Governments to act in a concerted manner post the Banking crisis of the late 1920's that resulted in the Depression of the 1930's, which ultimately led to WW II.

No elected Government would allow that to happen again.

The result of all of this is that Wall Street and UK PLC will ultimately be owned by investors in China, India, and the Arab States (Barclays for example). Regrettable yes, but the hope is that it is the least worst option.

That was largely a liquidity issue though. The bailout bill, in America certainly, is more concerned with buying up the bum loans from the bankers. It's taking the risky assets into public hands so that the banks can start lending again.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

That's funny, because the older I get, the more I move to the right. I've gone from socialist, Marxist, communist (14-20) to anarchist (20-25), back to socialist (25-33) and on to becoming a kind of centre-ground, left-leaning liberal, where I think I will stay.

As Churchill said, if you're not left as a youth you have no heart, if you're not right as an adult you have no brain

 

[The Esk]

That was largely a liquidity issue though. The bailout bill, in America certainly, is more concerned with buying up the bum loans from the bankers. It's taking the risky assets into public hands so that the banks can start lending again.

And how much of a liquidity crisis would we have without the Government action?

You're correct about the US bail-out plans, of course, the Brown plan represents far better value and less risk for the taxpayer.