BILL MOYERS JOURNAL | James Kwak and Simon Johnson Pt 2 | PBS

http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/04162010/profile.html
How did Big Finance grow so powerful that its hijinks nearly brought down the global economy and what hope is there for real reform with Washington politicians on Wall Street's payroll? Bill Moyers talks with authors Simon Johnson and James Kwak, two of the nation's most respected economic experts and authors of the new book 13 BANKERS: THE WALL STREET TAKEOVER AND THE NEXT FINANCIAL MELTDOWN. Bill Moyers Journal airs Friday nights at 9 on PBS. Check your local listings. Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itFl9MEHXzo

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• james kwak
• simon johnson
• baseline scenario
• bill moyers
• economy
• financial reform

[aseohosting]

thanks :D

[tbpmom]

So sorry that you will no longer be on after this week. :(

[angryliberal1984]

@voyeurdug I think you're right, but we were not involved in Vietnam at the same level from 55 to 74. The presence was heavy only for around 5-7 years in the middle. But the point remains the same - let's not let this thing get out of our control.

[voyeurdug]

Per the retrospective to last week's show and the assertion that Iraq/Afghanistan is our nation's longest war... keep in mind that I/A has been going on a scant nine years, whereas Vietnam spanned 1955-1974,

There are parallels aplenty between the two wars, which should be foremost in the minds of all concerned, especially voters/taxpayers. But in time so far, and the magnitude of blood and treasure expended for nought... it's not within spitting distance of Vietnam yet... and never should be.

[tooltalk]

@TheGiantRobot : their low-interest rate played a crucial role in creating various forms of low-interest morgages that fueled the housing bubble. The market rate would have been much higher without the Fed artificially manipulating the cost of borrowing. The Fed and the banking industry have hired former Enron lobbyists to push for this kind of legislation since last year.

Moyer and most liberal economists don't want to address that issue, but they are instead attacking the questioner.

[tooltalk]

@TheGiantRobot : yeah, but McConnell isn't the one writing the bill. And like I said, his concerns are legitimate. The issue of setting up a bailout fund - now making it a *explicit* bailout has been on discussion both among economists for decades. The institutions like the Fed, FDIC, Freddie, and Fanny, they all create bad incentive for banks and consumers alike to behave bad.

The reform bill furthermore instead of increasing disclosure and monitoring the Fed, gives them more power, despite

[TheGiantRobot]

@tooltalk

Echo chamber? You are your own echo chamber. Keep on rambling. We're all impressed.

[tooltalk]

@TheGiantRobot ; AIG or Lehman.

I'm not surprised that you are expressing such an uninformed view - after all, PBS, is an echo chamber for liberals where they pet each other and reinforce their group-think. It's not at all surprising that he invited these guests who also subscribe to his belief of human shortcoming, not gov't ineptitude / bad policies encouraged speculative behaviors among bankers and home buyers.

[tooltalk]

@TheGiantRobot : obsolete - banks can technically do what investment banks do, they don't do it, b/c they don't have the kind of expertise.

So if you look at the failed banks in the last two years, there are either just plain consumer banks (eg, Wachovia and small regional banks), investment banks (Bear, Lehman), or insurance co (eg, AIG). In another word, most banks stayed in their field of specialty, even after the repeal. The only exception is Citibank - though didn't quite collapse like

[TheGiantRobot]

@tooltalk

See, when you want to criticize Chris Dodd, I can get on your side. For you to then excuse McConnel like that just shows you are the partisan one. What a complete joke.