Just a thought... about the economy

[The Lawspeaker]

I am usually hugely in favor of little government intervention and a free market but there are some predator companies out there and trusts and hedge-funds that seek to destroy or monopolize everything and I think they are a danger to the free market- I also think that bosses that care little for their staff are a danger to the free market and the welfare of the people in general.

So here is the problem- who is to deal with them ? It is impossible for a citizen to tackle them and the only one who could emerge the victor out of a head-on collision with one is the government.
So could the irony sometimes be that the government will have to step in to protect the free market while a predator company operating in it forms a (lethal) threat to it ? I am thinking about hedge-funds, trusts, lobbyists and like-minded scum that should (in my personal opinion) be swinging from the nearest tree.

A good cause of action against such companies could even be a blunt nationalization, a forceful split-up and a release to new (sound) private investors and owners in the free market as a normal company (or in case of a hedge fund a normal bank).
Another problem could be labor issues- the problem is that some companies in a real free market could keep their wages down to the point that they start exploiting their laborers which of course is cheating when it comes to playing the game of the free market and paramount to enforcing slavery (we have seen it during the 19th century when workers were kept up the point of starvation and even forced to buy products at inflated rates at the shops which were also owned by their bosses).
Perhaps a good role for the government would be here to enforce collective bargaining and after that stay out as much as possible. Slightly higher wages (and of course a sound inflation control) could fuel the economy and drive up the standard of living and it could even help to aid people in creating their own businesses.

So what are your thoughts on it ?

[Treffie]

I heard something quite funny but also quite interesting recently about to get us out of this mess that we're in. If our Govt gave us a £1 million per family, it would mean that we would go out spending a lot more often, purchasing properties and taking expensive holidays and it would be a lot cheaper than bailing out all our banks and car manufacturers etc.

[SwordoftheVistula]

I think the problem is with the leveraged buyouts. Hedge funds and private equity firms don't actually have the money to buy up all these companies themselves, so they have to borrow it, and guarantee the loan with the income they expect to make from the company they are buying. Basically the same thing as the people attempting to 'flip' houses and condos. Thus, the same solutions can apply to this problem:

1. Eliminate or reform the 'Federal Reserve' and corresponding institutions in other countries which offer nearly unlimited amounts of cheap credit. Artificially low interest rates on loans make it easier to buy up companies with said loans.

2. Refuse to bailout any banks that lose money if/when these leveraged buyout deals go sour. Let that be a lesson to other banks not to be so willing to loan money for these deals in the future.


Monopolies are another (seperate) problem, but I'm not aware of any private equity funds creating monopolies. Monopolies are not anywhere near as much of a threat as in the past due to globalization, and today occur mainly in the technology industry. There's already laws against this in the US and EU. The other industries in the west where there are monopolies, such as passenger rail transport, are state-run.

[Rudy]

The US government forced some companies to give loans to low income people that would not ordinarily have been able to afford a home. Since the government forced the companies to loan money, they wanted to be reimbursed when all the loans failed.
Then many investors did not realize that the normally grade A debts were now junk, and lost money.
Now there are some predictions that when the bailout bubble bursts, it will be bigger than ever.

The Bailout Bubble - The
Bubble To End All Bubbles
By Gerald Celente
http://www.rense.com/general85/bubble.htm
There is some talk that it may all lead to a world currency.

As far as the hedge funds are concerned, it seems like every few years someone tries to take the money and run, but it is difficult to predict, or legislate against.

As all these mega-corporations are making record profits, I would like to see where the benefit is for me? I am usually in favor of progressive taxation.