more loose ends

Shocking. Over three months of nothing on this blog! Well, i've been busy, and lazy and unconnected to the internet. I've grown older, Barack got elected, the crisis worsened, etc etc.

A few quick thoughts, just to make sure that you are all still on the same page as I:

1) This is the worst financial crisis since 1929. what we must work to avoid now is the comeback of the period 1930-1932, which is when the recession and hyperinflation and unemployment really crippled Europe. As a meter: Hitler was elected in 1933.

2) Protectionism. As Jagdish Bagwhati puts it, with this new "Buy American" package of regulation (american manufacture must buy american materials eg steel) americans, who don't study enough history in school, will learn it by seeing it repeated before their very eyes. He compares it to the Smoot-Hawley act.

3) This crisis offers a chance at catharsis. i'm still waiting for a good left wing government to seize the moment, restructure internally, and come out of the crisis with what would be pinpointed as a 'managed' economy. The State owns big biz already anyways.

4) Its snowing in england: ooooooooooooooh!

5) Last but not least, if we don't count last sunday, AS Roma has been on an excellent run of wins for a while now.