Do you ever wonder what school children will read in history textbooks 50 years from now?
Will they actually call this the Great Recession and outline the programs put in place by the Bush/Obama administrations aimed at restarting lending (TALF), propping up asset prices (TARP) and creating jobs (ARRA)? Will they look back the way we did at the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), Works Projects Administration (WPA) and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and think, “wow, they really did a lot to get them out of such a tough economic time…” Or will history books actually reflect the generally accepted belief that these programs only served to prolong the depressed economic climate of the time, as most reputable historians and economists think today about the Great Depression…
Did we learn from our mistakes? Only time will tell… (I’ll see you at the Tick Tock Diner in New York City on November 22nd 2059.)