Silver Lining? Silver Certificates!

Wonkette: "The last time Congress swiftly passed a major, bipartisan piece of legislation was to authorize an idiot to launch the worst foreign policy decision in modern American history. So maybe things aren’t so bad hmm?"

They also note that among the few winners on Wall Street today is Campbell's Soup, who make canned goods suitable for survivalists. In fact, only Campbell's showed a gain today. Scary!

Well, the market goes down and then goes up again, so we shouldn't read so much into a 777 point drop on the Dow. Though that number itself is a little eerie, innit? Point is, a one-day event is worrisome but no crisis. If it STAYS down then it's officially a crash, not unlike that one near the end of the 1920s. Which pundits say was preventable but the government didn't act quickly enough.

The investment (bailout!) (note the change in running gag there) will still likely happen, and one hopes happen soon. What congress rejected was the Paulson plan. This is sensible. The amount was arbitrary, the concentration of power in Paulson's office was overreaching. However, we as a nation can afford to throw a little seed money at this problem. Just letting these companies fail is satisfying, in the same way that letting the slackers on a chain gang die of dehydration because they didn't earn water. Problem is, you gotta drag 'em back to the cells with you.

As it happens, I have enough liquid cash to tide me over for a while in case we wind up in a post-apocolyptic third-world scenario, so I can afford to laugh a little. My retirement is still at risk but then it always was, wasn't it?

Couple of other things. 1: Obligatory McCain cheap shot - if he suspended the campaign to make sure the negotiations were sound, then went back to campaigning because he was confident, doesn't that suggest a judgement problem? Pardon me, ANOTHER judgement problem? and 2: Gingrich. He spent a lot of last week whipping up opposition to the vote, which would make him look pretty good right now, if it wasn't for this. If the American People are against the bailout, the only people who look good right now are Congress. How the hell does a thing like THAT happen?