Snore- Maddoff can stay where he is- the bigger culprits would do nicely spending the rest of their lives in solitary confinement.

Is this not all a part of the freedoms of Capitalism that we all so cherish. These hearty risk taking individuals are not common criminals, after all they didn't lie on their dole form or something as serious as that, but they are entrepreneurs of the highest order. Obama should pin the Medal of Honor on their chests while we all stand to attention and sing the Star Spangled Banner with our hands on our hearts. Oh I'm going to be sick

Paul1405 asks:

"Is this not all a part of the freedoms of Capitalism that we all so cherish."

No, it isn't.

One of the ADVANTAGES of capitalism is that enterprises that cannot pay their way go bankrupt.

Let me repeat that. Bankruptcy is one of the advantages of capitalism.

It means that failed enterprises cannot poison the economy through subsidies, bailouts, or supping at the taxpayer's teat.

Capitalism is not superior to socialism because capitalist are smarter than socialists, Capitalism works where socialism fails simply because it allows economies to EVOLVE by burying failed enterprises.

In other words capitalism works because of "creative destruction". See:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_destruction

But if for some reason an enterprise is judged "too big too fail" (TBTF) then it needs to be regulated.

However, in fact, it was not the TBTF enterprises that were bailed out but those who were in charge. What we have seen through taxpayer funded bailouts is a transfer of funds from the needy to the greedy.

Or, to put it another way, we have seen socialism for bankers and highway robbery for the rest of us.

As for "stimulus packages" - that has been a transfer of funds from the taxpayers to crooks.

Note to Julia: You do not build an "education revolution" by building ridiculously overpriced school halls. You build it by getting good teachers, paying them well and sacking education bureaucrats.

Note to Kevin: One way of stimulating the construction industry is to burn down houses I suppose.

Steven

quote:

"Let me repeat that. Bankruptcy is one of the advantages of capitalism."

The supporters of capitalism always are sprooking the advantages of same over socialism. The problem is as it's the stooges of Big Business who write the laws to suit BB, then when BB acts criminally, as they do, and lots of the crimes of BB are within the "law", not forgetting who wrote the "law" in the first place. The rest of us are left to suffer the consequences.
As for stimulus packages, don't worry about school halls and insulation, very small beer, the biggest stimulus package of them all is WAR, bigger the war the better for BB.
The cry should be bring on WW3! well at least a few small wars, it must be time for us to go an kick the s#it out of another impoverished third world country (people) BB needs it.

Cheers Paul. ( all's rosy in the garden once again.)