Wall Street, DC, and the New (Dangerous) Financial Euphoria

Alternet.org
May 12, 2009Media

Talk about premature exaltation.

I spent last week in New York and Washington, speaking with many erstwhile Masters of the Universe and those charged with cleaning up the mess they've created. And in both cities I was stunned by how many Wall Street and political insiders were ready to break out the champagne. Forgive me if I keep the bubbly on the shelf.

The insider consensus seems to be that the worst of the hard times is behind us and that the economy is back on track. Or at least on track to be back on track.

Not even the latest employment stats showing that another 539,000 Americans had lost their jobs dimmed the enthusiasm. Call it The New Financial Euphoria.

Only it's not really new. When I was interviewing Eliot Spitzer last week on Squawk Box, he recommended a book called A Short History of Financial Euphoria by John Kenneth Galbraith, and over the weekend, in between running into more cases studies in financial euphoria, I gave it a read. Kudos to Spitzer, because the book couldn't be more apt to what we're facing today.

Report typos and corrections to: feedback@alternet.org.

Should Trump be allowed to hold office again?

Understand the importance of honest news ?

So do we.

The past year has been the most arduous of our lives. The Covid-19 pandemic continues to be catastrophic not only to our health - mental and physical - but also to the stability of millions of people. For all of us independent news organizations, it’s no exception.

We’ve covered everything thrown at us this past year and will continue to do so with your support. We’ve always understood the importance of calling out corruption, regardless of political affiliation.

We need your support in this difficult time. Every reader contribution, no matter the amount, makes a difference in allowing our newsroom to bring you the stories that matter, at a time when being informed is more important than ever. Invest with us.

Make a one-time contribution to Alternet All Access, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you.

Click to donate by check.

DonateDonate by credit card
Donate by Paypal
{{ post.roar_specific_data.api_data.analytics }}
@2023 - AlterNet Media Inc. All Rights Reserved. - "Poynter" fonts provided by fontsempire.com.