Regulatory Commissars: Talking nationalization

"Fascism is an economic model in which the state dictates the utilization of privately held assets to achieve public policy goals. Taking a page from Benito Mussolini's playbook, congressional Democrats have intimated that they think nationalizing some banks -- temporarily, of course -- is the way to fix the current "crisis." While the Obama administration is downplaying such talk, their acquisition this week of as much as 36 percent of Citigroup says otherwise. Their stated goal is to stabilize the banking system via an influx of capital. They say Citigroup and other banks are "too big to fail" -- a phrase that entered the regulatory lexicon in the 1980s following the failure of Penn Square Bank in Oklahoma City.

But are banks really in such bad shape? After a Monday meeting of the U.S. Treasury, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the Comptroller of the Currency, the Office of Thrift Supervision and the Federal Reserve, these five regulatory agencies said, "Currently, the major banking institutions have capital in excess of the amounts required to be considered well-capitalized." So why all the government intervention?

We are already seeing the consequences of Fascism Lite in our economy. Reporters, pundits and politicians are aggressively questioning and criticizing corporate expenditures for aircraft, bonuses and even marketing decisions. These issues are normally for shareholders to decide, but with the influx of capital that is flowing from the public purse, the taxpayers have in a way become shareholders. However, given the grave financial condition of the newspaper industry, and the historic inefficiency of the federal government, seeking business advice from either politicians or the media is a bit like asking a pacifist to draw up a battle plan.

Finally, the administration pronounced this week that the financial industry needs additional regulation to bar future crises. Our current financial morass traces its origins to the regulatory process enmeshed with a flawed social policy that elevated outcomes over opportunity. What followed is a natural consequence of the doctrine "too big to fail."

Expanded government control of private assets, production dictated to achieve political objectives, operations dictated by non-shareholders, conditions designed to produce failure and increased reliance upon public funding... welcome to Fascism. This is going to leave a mark."

Source: Patriot Post