Rant!

I have not had a rant in a while so here goes. As most of you know the federal government is debating a bail out of some really stupid people. OK I will not name call. Some people who were not using their heads. How is that? The argument is that if you do not bail out these companies they will fail and then there will be ginormous financial repercussions. My arguments is that you can only prop up a house of cards for so long. If it is going to fail, it is going to fail. If the private sector can not hold it together what makes you think that the proud owners of the DMV can do any better. What is really going to happen is that the government will, in the end, just print more money and hurt the dollar which will in turn hurt everyone, even more so then if they would have just let the chips fall where they fall. If the lending industry would not have loaned sub prime loans they would not be in the mess they are in. If they do not suffer the consequences they will just do it again. If my kids get away with steeling once, what is to stop them from doing it again. We bailed out the savings and loans in the 80's and here we are with it happening all over again.

The bottom Line is that Governments, like ours, are not designed to be entrepreneurs. They make, enforce and interpret laws. In limited cases they provide certain things like roads, utilities, and emergency services. Out side of that, THEY DO NOT BELONG IN BUSINESS AND THEY WILL ALWAYS FAIL AT BUSINESS. The free market can do a much better job at meeting needs and regulating the market place. It is not perfect but close enough that it works. I might add that it works better then any other system that has ever been introduced in the history of the world.

What I believe is happening is that people are wanting things without thinking of the consequences. We are a buy now and pay latter culture. Take the City where I live, Eagle Mountain, UT. The City has reposed building a recreation center that is between 50 and 60 thousand square feet. They are going to hold hearing and if their is a favorable response they will put it on the ballet for a vote next summer. I think it would be great to have a place to go swim, lift weights, play racket ball and all kinds of other great things. However, It is not the City's place to build this. If it is profitable then let Golds Gym, 24 hour fitness,or any of a thousand other gyms in the US build one. If it is not profitable for them to build one then what makes them think that a group of people, who have major turnover every 4 years, can make it profitable? If it is a smart choice then it will work in the private sector, if it is not it wont. In Eagle mountain we have no businesses to shoulder the tax burden so where does everyone think the money will come from? Taxes will go to make up the shortfall that is naturally there blocking someone like golds gym form building it. The only thing people are going to see is "wow a rec center right here in our back yard, yeah." Buy now pay latter.

If I were to tell a young married couple to go and buy their dream home and brand new car on credit and just pay for it over time I would be told I was stupid. When I suggest that governments save for improvements instead of borrow for them people call me stupid. Am I just missing something? I fear for the storm that is coming. Nobody is thinking about what is going to happen when it all falls apart, and trust me it will.