Super post.

Thanks, phoenixwoman. I note that the date of the Guardian article was 02/28/2008, yet Paulson/Bernanke claim they didn’t expect the melt-down…

I was reading Greg Palast’s book, The Best Democracy Money Can Buy at the time Obama selected Larry Summers as an economic adviser for the first term.

When Stiglitz was ousted as president of The World Bank, it was Summers who was most determined that Stiglitz not only have to go but go with reputation in tatters.

So, if Obama recognized Stiglitz’ economic wisdom, WHY did he then select Summers? There’s a lot about Obama’s selections that I cannot reach an understanding about.

PW – the issue isn’t who people worked for and/or studied with. the issue is the history of what people actually have done (and not done). obama has chosen summers – even if stiglitz couldn’t have been persuaded (and i wonder if that would have been the case if stiglitz had been offered what summers has been given) – that is no excuse for choosing summers. there are lots of other people (who actually have been right on the issues of regulation) who could have been chosen. that obama has none of them on his economic team is not a good sign.

great quote from pw’s link:

Michael Greenberger, Born’s former top aide at the CFTC, says the Paulson plan merely “circles around” the key reforms that are needed. “The Paulson plan arms the Fed to do rescue efforts. It makes it easier to chase the horse after it’s left the barn, but does nothing to keep the horse inside,” he told me. “Any plan that ignores the fundamental requirements of transparency, capital adequacy, antifraud and antimanipulation authority won’t work. You can throw all the money in the world at stimulus proposals, bailouts, what have you, but if you don’t form a concrete foundation that wards off the kind of conduct that’s taken place up to now, the trust will never be restored. The American public wants to know that when it looks at a balance sheet, it understands what’s happening.” (Jennifer Zuccarelli, a spokeswoman for Paulson, said she could not comment on the record about the criticisms.)

another example of why i like greenberger. wish obama had nominated him for head of the cftc, or even the sec.

Selise, I’m trying to figure out what Obama’s economic team selections ARE a sign of. What is that telling us?

The Clinton years, the World Bank, World Trade Organization, and International Monetary Fund all have some very dirty business in their history — economic hit men, jackals, military take-overs funded covertly, etc.

I think my heart and hope do not want to accept the signs my brain is recognizing…

What is that telling us?

i think we’re all trying to figure this one out…. imo, there are somethings we can rule out. change we can believe in being one of them – unless the change comes from us because it certainly doesn’t look like it’s coming from obama’s economic team.

best take on what it’s telling us is, imo, from hugh: The Triumphant Return of the Establishment

but the future is not preordained – we have a role to play too, if we are willing.

I opened the DIGG and commented there.

btw – when looking for the link to hugh’s diary, i saw another one that is a must read: A Christmas list to fix the financial meltdown.

Thanks for that great link to Hugh’s article. It and your comments there shed a lot of light on Obama’s actions.

As for our part in the future: I’m reminded of Mollie Ivins’ book, ‘You Got To Dance With Them What Brung You’…the internet bloggers ‘brung’ Obama; he even admits it. He will need us again in 4 years.

Selise, your intelligence, research and insight are awesome. I appreciate you! (I’m adding your name to my list of favorites for an Atticus Finch Award).

i’m not sure how much obama will need us (or maybe he expects we will fall in line regardless as we mostly did this time?). there is a different dynamic for an incumbent than a challenger. seems that challengers are more likely to look for support from outsider groups (us) than incumbents.

love molly ivins – reading her made me dread moving to tx a little less.

p.s. thanks for your kind words. blushing here *g*

Great post, PW, as per usual. Thanks.

Second all the nice things said about selise.

Dugg, thanks for opening.