2008 – The Year in Economics, Politics, Pirates and Terrorism

The year 2008 will be remembered for many firsts.  The first black Presidential candidate.  Almost the first female Presidential candidate.  The oldest candidate. 

This past year saw unfortunate and preventable business failures in the financial sector, just as the presidential campaign season was hitting its stride. The government’s response to “calm” markets and restore stability has probably made matters worse.  The next President seems on a path to do more of the same.

The press and political elements here either capitalized on or tried to manage around the constant drumbeat of bad economic news with very few to present a fair perspective.

Welcome to the place for proper perspective, kids.

Our current economy does not resemble that of the “Great Depression”, the recession of 2000-2001, the early 90s downturn, or the “malaise-days” of the Carter Administration and early years of Ronald Reagan.  By all but a few measures, we are all much better off.  Unemployment is lower, GDP is higher, inflation is lower, and home ownership is still higher.

Instead of bread lines of the extended 1930s downturn that FDR ran through the 40s, we have lines for i-Pods and i-Phones and who knows what as the holiday shopping season began.  Instead of people getting hurt of killed over shortages of food, we have store staff getting trampled by selfish and inconsiderate shoppers at Wal-Mart or shot by someone over the last toy on the shelf at Toys-R-Us.  Of course, the United Food and Commercial Workers Union places blame on the store  - not those involved in involuntary manslaughter.

Terrorism

Pirates of the Caribbean is not just a movie, but a common vocation among certain radicalized factions of the Islamic faith on the high seas.  Several cargo ships carrying hundreds of millions of dollars worth of guns, oil and chemicals have been hijacked.  Indian security is still on high alert after Muslim extremists appear to be behind the bloody attacks on civilians at hotels, restaurants and at a Jewish outreach center.

If you think that Barak Obama will bring peace to the world by magically solving the Israeli-Palestinian impasse, think again. 

In India verses Pakistan, the long disputed region of Kashmir seems to be the root cause of the bloodshed there. 

Here is my version of hope and change – let’s just watch Led Zeppelin’s 1970s anthem instead of killing each other.  As the young folk say, “Peace – out.”