America's Economic Future – A Discussion By Ted Kavadas
“One of the biggest economic myths since the Great Depression is that governments can ameliorate or counteract the ebbs and flows of free markets. Government spending has never worked as a trigger for sustained and vibrant economic growth. Ever. Scholarship has demonstrated that the New Deal perpetuated the Depression rather than cured it. On the …
On October 16 I wrote a post titled “Tax Increases And Our Economic Situation.” That post can be found at this link. Some may wonder what tax increases I am referring to, as at least headline tax rates have yet to increase in many areas. Tax increases have been deferred for many reasons. Among these …
In the Wall Street Journal on Saturday, February 13 there was an editorial titled “High-Speed Spending.” This discussed the dubious financial dynamics of a long-proposed “high speed” Orlando-to-Tampa rail project. I also heard of a proposal to do a similar project between St. Louis and Chicago. I have lived in the Chicago area for most …
An article in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal presents a thorough summary of the situation at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The article is titled, “No Exit in Sight for U.S. As Fannie, Freddie Flail.” Here is the link to the story: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704362004575001042824028862.html?KEYWORDS=no+exit+in+sight+for+us I’ve commented extensively on the U.S. real estate situation, and the national attempts …
I found some interesting comments in the SIGTARP January 30 2010 Report to Congress: http://www.sigtarp.gov/reports/congress/2010/January2010_Quarterly_Report_to_Congress.pdf From the Executive Summary, which begins on Page 5: “Many of TARP’s stated goals, however, have simply not been met. Despite the fact that the explicit goal of the Capital Purchase Program (“CPP”) was to increase financing to U.S. businesses and consumers, …
I found plenty of noteworthy comments in last night’s State of the Union Address. Here is the link to the transcript: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-state-union-address Here are a couple of my thoughts: First, many stimulus initiatives were mentioned. Some of these were new ideas. That stimulus ideas are proliferating should not be a surprise, as many in …
Over the last few years the political scene has become more volatile, swinging from heavily Republican to heavily Democratic. Now, it appears as if the political volatility is increasing yet again, with the recent election of Scott Brown and the unexpected hurdles Ben Bernanke is facing during his reconfirmation. Many incumbents (and political appointees) who until recently seemed …
Given the incredibly outsized intervention efforts in the residential real estate market, I think it is important to examine some dynamics of the real estate bubble. Here is a chart from the 12/15/09 Contrary Investor commentary that I believe is interesting, as it depicts some underlying residential real estate fundamentals. It shows the equity and mortgage …
Here is a Wall Street Journal editorial on the December 24 developments at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. This editorial provides some new perspectives on the matter: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704152804574628350980043082.html My original comments on these developments was on December 28. I feel it is critically important to understand the extent of intervention as it pertains to the housing market. Fannie …
For those who may have missed it, there was a notable development on December 24 concerning Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Here is The Wall Street Journal link and the Treasury Dept link: http://www.ustreas.gov/press/releases/2009122415345924543.htm http://online.wsj.com/article/SB126168307200704747.html Basically the government announced plans to cover an unlimited amount of losses at both companies. It is yet another testament …