Bush hands over reins of us economy to eu

[goodbyehollywood]

Well, scuba steve, the facts aren't with you. Clinton legislated the deregulation of the markets and Bush thought every American had the right to own a house, so he encouraged policies that made that possible. It created a toxic cocktail of unchecked greed, dishonesty and stupidity. Paulson and Congress pushed the bailout bill, which has made America's debt load soar and has proved wildly ineffective. Everybody-- not just the fed-- had a finger in the pie.

But, yes, interest rates were too low for too long and will likely go lower, though it's a short road to zero. If and when America's credit rating is downgraded, that should just about be end-game. The threat of that has probably forced Bush to do a lot of things he would have preferred not to, including indulge nervous foreign investors and kowtow to other countries in ways that were unimaginable just a few months ago. We are no longer the penultimate superpower and we have been forced to acknowledge to the world that we accept that. It was sad to know it, but admitting it is truly humbling. There's little joy in Mudville today.