David McElroy

We found out this week that the Federal Reserve Bank’s secret lending to the blue chip banks of Wall Street in 2008 added up to $1.2 trillion. Not million. Not billion. That’s trillion.

Just in case you’re numb from hearing numbers such as this all the time lately, let’s put that into perspective. In 2008, the federal government brought in $2.5 trillion in all forms of revenue. So the government did the equivalent of handing out nearly half of every penny it collected from us and handed it to Wall Street banks.

The story told by the advocates of this financial insanity is that their actions “saved the economy” when the crisis hit, but what’s their evidence? The things they keep predicting don’t happen. The things they prescribe as solutions don’t solve the problems. So why do governments keep listening to these voodoo masters?

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What does a government agency do when it finds out that it has unspent money? Does it give the money back to taxpayers? Does it find another department with more important needs? Or does it find some way to spend the money — to make sure it can get the same money next year?

If you made the third choice, you might have a bright future ahead as a bureaucrat. If you made the first choice, you’re living your life on Fantasy Island.

In Camden, N.J., the city finds itself with $63,000 burning a hole in its bank account, because the grant from which the money comes expires on Sept. 30. Here’s the story. The state Department of Criminal Justice made the grant to the County Prosecutor’s Office, which didn’t know what to do with the money, because its “community justice director” — yes, that’s the title — was laid off in May. So that office agreed to give it to the city, which is required to spend it immediately. Why? Here’s the key:

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More communication is supposed to lead to people getting along better. That’s what I’ve always heard. But when it comes to political communication in this increasingly polarized country, there’s no understanding. There’s less and less attempt by people to understand each other. Instead, there’s more hatred.

I browse strongly partisan websites every now and then just to get an idea about what people on both sides of the mainstream are saying. Every time I do, it seems to leave me feeling physically ill and emotionally numb, because the partisans of the mainstream don’t just disagree with one another. They hate each other.

Have you read what the partisans on both sides have to say about the other? They’re angry and vicious and mean. Much of what they write is unfair and intellectually dishonest. I first added links to four of them — two on each side — but I realized that I don’t want to do that. I’m not trying to make you angrier. I’m trying to get you to look for a solution beyond the anger.

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