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America's savings hoax exposed
July 12, 2006 (MarketWatch)
Politicians, bankers and CEOs all want you to spend, not save
OK, let's stop the charade and admit the truth. Why does America have a zero savings rate? Because America has no savings policy. Period. For more than a decade, Washington, Wall Street and Corporate America have favored a national spending policy at the expense of a national savings policy.
So when these policymakers tell us to "save more," they're happy-face hypocrites hiding their real goals. They really want you to spend, not save!
In pure economic terms, the choice is simple. You can't save and spend too. And especially since the 2000-02 recession, our policymakers have consistently voted in favor of spending, not saving. So read my lips: America's savings policy is a fake, bogus, phony, fraudulent, bankrupt and, oh yes, non-existent. Why? Because our policymakers don't want you to save, they want you to spend, spend no matter how deep you go into debt. Ignore their rhetoric, watch their actions.
AntiSpin: Paul Farrell has long been on our Good Guys list, and this piece cements his position as a leader among the most honorable writers for major financial press outlets. We hear complaints all the time that major media organizations are generally too helpful in supporting the collective behavioral engineering coming out of Washington, Wall Street and Corporate America that's designed to keep consumers in debt and not save. The fact is, there is a long list of writers -- including Laura Rowley, Ben Stein, Roddy Boyd -- who do a fantastic job of helping those who want help, and point out just what The System is designed to do. We salute you.
July 12, 2006 (MarketWatch)
Politicians, bankers and CEOs all want you to spend, not save
OK, let's stop the charade and admit the truth. Why does America have a zero savings rate? Because America has no savings policy. Period. For more than a decade, Washington, Wall Street and Corporate America have favored a national spending policy at the expense of a national savings policy.
So when these policymakers tell us to "save more," they're happy-face hypocrites hiding their real goals. They really want you to spend, not save!
In pure economic terms, the choice is simple. You can't save and spend too. And especially since the 2000-02 recession, our policymakers have consistently voted in favor of spending, not saving. So read my lips: America's savings policy is a fake, bogus, phony, fraudulent, bankrupt and, oh yes, non-existent. Why? Because our policymakers don't want you to save, they want you to spend, spend no matter how deep you go into debt. Ignore their rhetoric, watch their actions.
AntiSpin: Paul Farrell has long been on our Good Guys list, and this piece cements his position as a leader among the most honorable writers for major financial press outlets. We hear complaints all the time that major media organizations are generally too helpful in supporting the collective behavioral engineering coming out of Washington, Wall Street and Corporate America that's designed to keep consumers in debt and not save. The fact is, there is a long list of writers -- including Laura Rowley, Ben Stein, Roddy Boyd -- who do a fantastic job of helping those who want help, and point out just what The System is designed to do. We salute you.
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