Confidence Under Attack: Part 2 of a Series

The longtime nexus between Wall Street and Washington, D.C. has been strengthened beyond belief. The last days of March of this year gave us the Bear Stearns government-backed bail out. We had a new ballgame. The mixture of politics and business should ideally be kept as distanced as possible. Referees should not tackle the runner and linebackers should not throw penalty flags.

Now we are witnessing the bizarre and horrific spectacle of politicians like Barney Frank who somehow feel qualified to know which loans should be approved by a bank and at what rate. He does the aforementioned credit work in the morning. In the afternoon, he designs fuel efficient, affordable, well-styled cars that will salvage the Big Three.

So, too, we cringe as we watch corporate CEOs make desperate pleas for taxpayer money to save their businesses. Last week, it was the car guys; this week, commercial real estate developers; next week, what, massage parlors? They beg Washington when they should be petitioning investors and creditors to say yea or nay to whatever it is that they peddle.   

It is all strange indeed. A strangeness that stiff-arms confidence because roles have been changed. What we had come to expect in terms of spheres of responsibility is violated. Boundaries are blurred, if not obliterated. And it is all happening at warp speed. To this, we react as is dictated by human nature. It is as if a large, grotesque, and unknown beast has appeared in our mountain village. We watch with keen eyes. What is this thing? We move and breathe deliberately and silently. We need to figure this out first before we have restored confidence to go about our daily tasks.

Was not Socrates' definition of justice akin to each person performing the work for which he is best suited and that everything has it's place? Certain work should only be performed by those skilled for the work in question. Trespass with caution.