COMM 337: Tempest in a teapot? Two op-ed political commentary pieces

Thomas Friedman http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/29/opinion/29friedman.html The Tea Kettle Movement Sept. 28

The issues that upset the Tea Kettle movement — debt and bloated government — are actually symptoms of our real problem, not causes. They are symptoms of a country in a state of incremental decline and losing its competitive edge, because our politics has become just another form of sports entertainment, our Congress a forum for legalized bribery and our main lawmaking institutions divided by toxic partisanship to the point of paralysis.

Paul B. Farrell, MarketWatch

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/america-on-the-brink-of-a-second-revolution-2010-09-28 America on the brink of a Second Revolution
Commentary: 2010 elections guarantee gridlock, anti-capitalist class war

'... brilliant but bleak “Decadence of Election 2010” report by Prof. Peter Morici, former chief economist at the International Trade Commission. He sees no hope from America’s political parties, just a dark scenario ahead.'

Warning: Another revolution will cost investors 20% more losses

Yes, big warning, the Second American Revolution will extract painful austerity, not the “happy days are here again” future touted by tea-baggers. For years it’ll be impossible for most of America’s 95 million investors to develop a successful investment or logical retirement strategy.

Why? Political chaos will translate into extreme volatility and a highly unpredictable stock market. Result: Wall Street will lose another 20% of the value of your retirement portfolio in the next decade, just as Wall Street did the last decade. So if you think you’re “mad as hell” now, “you ain’t seen nuthin’ yet!”