Thanks Uncle Sam! - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

Tully Mars · 11-17-2010, 11:12 AM

Warren Buffett seems to thinks Bush et el did a good thing and probably saved the nation from a worse meltdown-

Quote:

Billionaire Warren Buffett wants people to know he thinks the U.S. government performed well during the economic meltdown of 2008.

So the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. wrote a thank-you note to "Uncle Sam" that the New York Times published Wednesday on its op-ed page.

Buffett used the opinion piece to reiterate his view that the government should be praised for its efforts to stabilize the economy with massive bailouts and stimulus spending.

Buffett said in the article that specific decisions will be questioned, but Uncle Sam's actions during the crisis were "remarkably effective." He said that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke; Treasury secretaries Hank Paulson and Tim Geithner; FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair and former President George W. Bush all acted courageously to right the economy.

Source

I've been torn about the TARP program and whether or not it worked all that well. I do think it worked to some degree, I just question how much. I have gotten tried of the right blaming Obama for creating it when it was actually something Bush did on his way out the door. I also never liked how when the wall street CEO showed up then response was basically "how much do you need and when?" The when the CEO's from the auto industry showed up it was "How'd you guys get here?"

I've always respected Buffett but I'm not sure what to make of this move. Does he have other motives? Or is he just trying to point put not everything the government does is bad?

Thought?

Baraka_Guru · 11-17-2010, 11:51 AM

Quote:

Pretty Good for Government Work
By WARREN E. BUFFETT
Published: November 16, 2010
Omaha

DEAR Uncle Sam,

My mother told me to send thank-you notes promptly. I’ve been remiss.

Let me remind you why I’m writing. Just over two years ago, in September 2008, our country faced an economic meltdown. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the pillars that supported our mortgage system, had been forced into conservatorship. Several of our largest commercial banks were teetering. One of Wall Street’s giant investment banks had gone bankrupt, and the remaining three were poised to follow. A.I.G., the world’s most famous insurer, was at death’s door.

Many of our largest industrial companies, dependent on commercial paper financing that had disappeared, were weeks away from exhausting their cash resources. Indeed, all of corporate America’s dominoes were lined up, ready to topple at lightning speed. My own company, Berkshire Hathaway, might have been the last to fall, but that distinction provided little solace.

Nor was it just business that was in peril: 300 million Americans were in the domino line as well. Just days before, the jobs, income, 401(k)’s and money-market funds of these citizens had seemed secure. Then, virtually overnight, everything began to turn into pumpkins and mice. There was no hiding place. A destructive economic force unlike any seen for generations had been unleashed.

Only one counterforce was available, and that was you, Uncle Sam. Yes, you are often clumsy, even inept. But when businesses and people worldwide race to get liquid, you are the only party with the resources to take the other side of the transaction. And when our citizens are losing trust by the hour in institutions they once revered, only you can restore calm.

When the crisis struck, I felt you would understand the role you had to play. But you’ve never been known for speed, and in a meltdown minutes matter. I worried whether the barrage of shattering surprises would disorient you. You would have to improvise solutions on the run, stretch legal boundaries and avoid slowdowns, like Congressional hearings and studies. You would also need to get turf-conscious departments to work together in mounting your counterattack. The challenge was huge, and many people thought you were not up to it.

Well, Uncle Sam, you delivered. People will second-guess your specific decisions; you can always count on that. But just as there is a fog of war, there is a fog of panic — and, overall, your actions were remarkably effective.

I don’t know precisely how you orchestrated these. But I did have a pretty good seat as events unfolded, and I would like to commend a few of your troops. In the darkest of days, Ben Bernanke, Hank Paulson, Tim Geithner and Sheila Bair grasped the gravity of the situation and acted with courage and dispatch. And though I never voted for George W. Bush, I give him great credit for leading, even as Congress postured and squabbled.

You have been criticized, Uncle Sam, for some of the earlier decisions that got us in this mess — most prominently, for not battling the rot building up in the housing market. But then few of your critics saw matters clearly either. In truth, almost all of the country became possessed by the idea that home prices could never fall significantly.

That was a mass delusion, reinforced by rapidly rising prices that discredited the few skeptics who warned of trouble. Delusions, whether about tulips or Internet stocks, produce bubbles. And when bubbles pop, they can generate waves of trouble that hit shores far from their origin. This bubble was a doozy and its pop was felt around the world.

So, again, Uncle Sam, thanks to you and your aides. Often you are wasteful, and sometimes you are bullying. On occasion, you are downright maddening. But in this extraordinary emergency, you came through — and the world would look far different now if you had not.

Your grateful nephew,

Warren

Warren E. Buffett is the chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway, a diversified holding company.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/17/op...fett.html?_r=2

* * * * *

As a blogger on globeandmail.com points out, it's all about the subtext, which probably means, essentially, "be bullish."

Quote:

If there is a subtext to Mr. Buffett’s note, it is this: The recent moves by U.S. authorities have for the most part been the right moves. So rather than fret over the consequences of government intervention, be bullish.

It's time to invest again, Americans.

Tully Mars · 11-17-2010, 11:53 AM

Thanks BG, I went looking and the phone rang so I never got around to posting the letter he wrote.

dogzilla · 11-17-2010, 12:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tully Mars

Warren Buffett seems to thinks Bush et el did a good thing and probably saved the nation from a worse meltdown-

Source

I've been torn about the TARP program and whether or not it worked all that well. I do think it worked to some degree, I just question how much. I have gotten tried of the right blaming Obama for creating it when it was actually something Bush did on his way out the door. I also never liked how when the wall street CEO showed up then response was basically "how much do you need and when?" The when the CEO's from the auto industry showed up it was "How'd you guys get here?"

I've always respected Buffett but I'm not sure what to make of this move. Does he have other motives? Or is he just truing to poit put not everything the governemnt does is bad?

Thought?

The difference between Bush's TARP and Obama's stimulus is that a significant part of the TARP money has been repaid. The stimulus? you might as well had an $800 billion bonfire.

Buffet's motivation? Maybe he thinks he's giving the government credit for doing something right. More likely setting the stage for justifying more bailouts down the line. As in Warren Buffet said it was the right thing to do last time, so we should do it again.

Baraka_Guru · 11-17-2010, 01:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dogzilla

The stimulus? you might as well had an $800 billion bonfire.

Actually, I think only about a quarter of that was tax cuts.

Tully Mars · 11-18-2010, 08:03 AM

Yeah, I think GM is currently working to pay back much of what they were loaned. Instead of taking their money maybe we should just throw in on the bonfire?

william · 11-25-2010, 12:40 PM

I love a good read of irony. Have to say thank-you. After all, I am not one of the top miniscule percent that would benefit from extending the Bush tax cuts. The irony? Oh, that's right - the top wants the benefits w/out the costs. Who's next? The corporations?
I know - it sucks to live in a society such as ours, where we expect schools for our children and paved roads to drive on. That is such BS! How to pay for it? That's right - outsource. Oh wait - those jobs don't do that.
I don't care if you are "tea party" "green party" Democrat, Replublican, Independant, or et al. The bottom line is this - if you truly care about this country and what it stands for, you will do your part. The upper 2% will provide jobs? Since when? If that was true, our economy should be busting out of the seams over the last 10 years.

11-17-2010, 11:53 AM	#3 (permalink)
Tully Mars Living in a Warmer Insanity Super Moderator Location: Yucatan, Mexico	Thanks BG, I went looking and the phone rang so I never got around to posting the letter he wrote. __________________ I used to drink to drown my sorrows, but the damned things have learned how to swim- Frida Kahlo Vice President Starkizzer Fan Club

11-18-2010, 08:03 AM	#6 (permalink)
Tully Mars Living in a Warmer Insanity Super Moderator Location: Yucatan, Mexico	Yeah, I think GM is currently working to pay back much of what they were loaned. Instead of taking their money maybe we should just throw in on the bonfire? __________________ I used to drink to drown my sorrows, but the damned things have learned how to swim- Frida Kahlo Vice President Starkizzer Fan Club

11-25-2010, 12:40 PM	#7 (permalink)
william Psycho	I love a good read of irony. Have to say thank-you. After all, I am not one of the top miniscule percent that would benefit from extending the Bush tax cuts. The irony? Oh, that's right - the top wants the benefits w/out the costs. Who's next? The corporations? I know - it sucks to live in a society such as ours, where we expect schools for our children and paved roads to drive on. That is such BS! How to pay for it? That's right - outsource. Oh wait - those jobs don't do that. I don't care if you are "tea party" "green party" Democrat, Replublican, Independant, or et al. The bottom line is this - if you truly care about this country and what it stands for, you will do your part. The upper 2% will provide jobs? Since when? If that was true, our economy should be busting out of the seams over the last 10 years.