Question about economy and regulation/deregulation
 

Im kinda on the fence about this issue. Seems like that stigma is democrats favor bigger government and more regulations while republicans favor smaller government and deregulation.

With the latest financial fiascos we are having, wouldn't it make more sense to have some kind of regulation and/or oversight committees? Would it have changed the outcome? Is part of the reason we are in this mess because of complete and systematic deregulation by the current administration? And is it possible to have regulation and/or oversight committees that wont infringe on free market principles? Is it possible to have a middle-ground between the two?

Just can't believe nobody saw this coming or that their is any kind of accountability as well. I mean the Lehman Bros CEO took a $22 Million bonus back in March/April of 2008 I heard and assured the shareholders and board that the company was financially sound.

I'd like to hear from both sides, seems like a lose-lose no matter what.

very good topic buddy , this is going to be a interesting thread

The part about Republicans wanting smaller government is simply not true. They have expanded our government more than almost any administration in history. They also just nationalized the mortgage and insurance industries. The small government bullshit is just to grab some votes from hicks who think the FBI is going to storm down their door and steal their gun.

I agree completely.

THERE WAS REGULATION! Several of them in fact. Look up Roosevelt when you get a chance.

From wiki,
"During the Great Depression of the 1930s, Roosevelt created the New Deal to provide relief for the unemployed, recovery of the economy, and reform of the economic and banking systems.[1] Although recovery of the economy was incomplete until almost 1940, the programs he initiated such as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) continue to have instrumental roles in the nation's commerce. One of his most important legacies is the Social Security system."

He put these systems in place to insure that the Great Depression would NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN.

Somewhere along the lines one of these dumb asses started to deregulate the system.

You mean it WAS until Truman got his hands on it and turned it from an Independant Agency into another government cookie jar.

Research Phil Gramm and the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. Then, check out Wendy Gramm heading the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and her connection with Enron.

Deregulation is not about smaller govt. it was just a ploy so they could engage in dirty backroom futures trading with no regulation - the rich getting richer. Republicans are not about smaller govt. they are only about making themselves and their buddies as much cash as possible in the least ethical way.

Very true. Even when they break the rules and get caught they are not penalized as they should be. The Enron fiasco shows what they can get away with.

This so called "Free Market" is not free. It costs money. The people who pay are the tax payers, pension holders and house buyers. This $700 billion bale out is not coming out of GWB's pocket, it's coming out of normal Americans pockets. Sadly Obama will be in power when it needs to be collected. Will America remember who created the debt?