Crisis and Opportunity

As every government savior knows, there’s nothing like a good crisis to provide the opportunity to throw caution and prudence away in order to pursue a desired objective. Sometimes they even gloat about the opportunity and their plans to seize on it. As the Messiah’s incoming chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, recently revealed: “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste.”

No, you don’t. Not if you’re a Washington parasite, that is.

Speaking of Washington parasites, what was it that the VP-In-Waiting told George Stephanopoulos? Oh yeah, while making the case for a $600-$700 billion “stimulus” package, Biden told the host of “This Week” that the “economy is in danger of ‘absolutely tanking.’”

I grant you that, Joe. What a great opportunity this presents to you and the Messiah! Before we know what hits us, you and He will stick us with a bill that some are predicting could be as much as $850 billion. If all goes according to your plan, the Christian Science Monitor notes that this would be “one of the most expensive single bills ever passed by US lawmakers.” Good for you, Joe! I'm sure that will make Paul Krugman and the rest of the Keynesians proud.

No biggie, though, even the supposedly conservative George W. Bush felt the need to abandon his free-market principles “to save the free-market system.” How very Orwellian of him.

And since it was the Republican Bush who nationalized the banking industry and unilaterally ordered a $17 billion bailout of GM and Chrysler, both parties are enjoying the opportunity presented by the financial crisis.

Lest anyone think that only the government benefits from a crisis, today it was reported that commercial real estate developers are lobbying for their slice of the bailout billions. It all just makes me wonder: who's next? Well, I hear the New York Times is having trouble paying the bills. And the state of New York. And California. And a host of other states.

But hey, while the economy tanks and unemployment increases, Congress gave themselves a raise!

Hell ... why not? When you have the exclusive power to print money, and don't have to concern yourself with satisfying your customers and making a profit, a pay raise makes perfect economic sense. I'm sure if us commoners could vote ourselves a pay raise we'd all vote 'aye.'

So, while the government gorges itself on our future income and creates make-work jobs for the "shovel ready" pork barrel construction market, all of those trillions of dollars being "invested" by our Fearless Leaders will not be available for private investment in the actual productive sectors of the economy -- whatever those may be. We'll never know what products or inventions never get created, since these are the unseen costs of panicked government action.

Economic historian Roberty Higgs has brilliantly documented the undeniable fact that crises lead to bigger government, and bigger government leads to the loss of liberty. I highly recommend his books.

It's difficult to imagine that the US Government can get any bigger than it is today. But I'm sure our saviors will find a way. After all -- we're in the midst of a crisis.