If we do not reelect president Obama we will be stuck with a deregulator.
Put simply: deregulation causes collapse because it allows for dirty business and those who know how, exploit those who do not.
It was the elimination of Glass-Steagall (a government regulation) that allowed bankers to undercut previously established safety precautions and take high risk investments like those sub-prime mortgages that they were eagerly giving out to everyone and their mother at no money down (bc it drove up property values) packaging them with safe investments like government bonds (Triple A rated bonds from Frannie Mae), selling the whole thing as a safe investment in what is known as a "collateralized debt obligation" to other banks, pension funds, etc., When, inevitably, people began defaulting on their mortgages, the banks stopped giving out loans, which caused inflation. So now while money was decreasing in value the debt stayed at the same level meaning you owed more money to pay off debts. This in turn, caused businesses, especially medium size businesses (many of which relied on loans from the bank every year) to fail. Soon the banks were failing because they owned so many of these sub-prime mortgages and in the end that created this recession. (ok so I borrowed this from my Ron Paul post but its relevant.)
The Glass Steagall Act made this kind of dealing illegal. Regulation is generally a good thing. The government is an easy boogeyman but the day we lose faith in it, is the day we give ourselves to the corporations.
This recession resulting from a regulatory failure is not new news. The Savings and Loans Crisis in the 80's is another very similar example of this trend.
The bailout was necessary because without it we would have had another Great Depression.
Now I'm not a huge fan of Obama's because with that bailout I would have liked to see 3 things: 1) federal absolving of student loan debts, a 2 year freeze on bank foreclosures of houses owned for more than 5 years, and of course prosecutions for the bankers and investors who knowingly poisoned the market.
Also, I wish Obama would use George W. Bush's leadership style of "you don't like my policy? too bad." I wish he were more progressive...HOWEVER Obama is the ONLY choice of candidate. Nobody else will do. Anyone who favors deregulation is a fool.
Regulation is responsible for a minimum wage, desegregation, clean air, clean water, health and safety standards, workplace safety, workman's comp, the ability to organize labor, child labor laws, public education standards (which, as Republicans attack the Department of Education, have been slipping), eliminating sexism in the workplace (to a degree), and of course my favorite: ENDING SLAVERY.
I know Obama isnt the ideal candidate, but as he has said "let's not let perfection be the enemy of pragmatism."
