No, really...banks are the devil. They operate on a classic Faustian theme: get something now that you have always wanted immediately; pay more than that thing was worth in the end.
I think the basic theme behind the Faustian legend is the lack of moral constitution and a testament to peoples inclination to greed, impulse, and impatience. Most willingly enter a contract they know on every instinctual and conscious level puts them at a disadvantage all for an immediate pleasure.
The bank excels at this. Why wait to have that ubber-expensive thing? Get it now. Now. NOW. Just pay me interest later. It seems mutually beneficial with a little blood-letting on your part but the ease of credit makes it easier for you to loan and loan again. You may have loaned for your computer. Then your car. Then your house. Then that boat. The more money you make doesn't seem to improve your sense of patience either. A rational person might say, "Since I make more, I can wait and save and have what I want without paying interest." Instead, a person is likely to say "Since I pay more, I can apply for more loans because I am more likely to pay them off."
Loans at interest are not demonic in itself. They can be useful, definitely, but it is excessive spending that can make lenders become predatory. When there is a huge market there is an enormous impulse to reap when the yield is high.
Patience...prudence...resourcefulness...thriftiness...discipline. These are the enemies of a reckless, expanding economy but the virtues of a stable one. An expanding economy should be done on sound basis. It should rise from an authentic need or demand which is addressed with it's relative serviced. It should also arise not on a sudden infusion of massive credit. It is like building an economy with hollow bricks...it's own weight will bring it crashing down.
I doubt we can spend our way out and I doubt we can get out without a large sacrifice from the people. I know, it is a crime that the people have to pay for debts they did not incur. It is a ridiculous crime and I feel that cleaning up someone else's mess does not teach them the lesson they need to learn. But either they clean up their own mess or we clean it up and then clean them up in the process. I think if we are going to take the burden for all these things we get to take a stronger responsibility in our nations government and business policies.
I...just don't have any clue HOW. The people at large cannot make these decisions in a practical way. And the problem with politics is that it is like a fire-and-forget missile. Once you elect someone you don't really have that much control over them until the next election unless they can be proven to do something illegal. Aside from that, one hardly knows the true moral character of the people they are voting for. How can you? You only know what you see and hear and both talk a good game..both slander each other...in the end, it basically comes down to a gut feeling, party allegiance, or...worst of all...hope- a form of spiritual/mental gambling for the powerless.
Banks obviously need to be reigned in but they are such a clear incentive to those who profit from them. Thus, just as one had to remove church from state, we have to find a way to remove the profit incentive from politics. Somehow empower these people while making them incorruptible. One way might be to keep them at our level and in constant contact, repour, and interaction with the people in terms of what they are doing and why they are doing it. Transparency should not have to be asked for and it is certainly not a privilege bestowed by those in power in a real democracy. It is inherent. Yes, there are things that need to be concealed...but let's not piggyback off the plausible.
I think the basic theme behind the Faustian legend is the lack of moral constitution and a testament to peoples inclination to greed, impulse, and impatience. Most willingly enter a contract they know on every instinctual and conscious level puts them at a disadvantage all for an immediate pleasure.
The bank excels at this. Why wait to have that ubber-expensive thing? Get it now. Now. NOW. Just pay me interest later. It seems mutually beneficial with a little blood-letting on your part but the ease of credit makes it easier for you to loan and loan again. You may have loaned for your computer. Then your car. Then your house. Then that boat. The more money you make doesn't seem to improve your sense of patience either. A rational person might say, "Since I make more, I can wait and save and have what I want without paying interest." Instead, a person is likely to say "Since I pay more, I can apply for more loans because I am more likely to pay them off."
Loans at interest are not demonic in itself. They can be useful, definitely, but it is excessive spending that can make lenders become predatory. When there is a huge market there is an enormous impulse to reap when the yield is high.
Patience...prudence...resourcefulness...thriftiness...discipline. These are the enemies of a reckless, expanding economy but the virtues of a stable one. An expanding economy should be done on sound basis. It should rise from an authentic need or demand which is addressed with it's relative serviced. It should also arise not on a sudden infusion of massive credit. It is like building an economy with hollow bricks...it's own weight will bring it crashing down.
I doubt we can spend our way out and I doubt we can get out without a large sacrifice from the people. I know, it is a crime that the people have to pay for debts they did not incur. It is a ridiculous crime and I feel that cleaning up someone else's mess does not teach them the lesson they need to learn. But either they clean up their own mess or we clean it up and then clean them up in the process. I think if we are going to take the burden for all these things we get to take a stronger responsibility in our nations government and business policies.
I...just don't have any clue HOW. The people at large cannot make these decisions in a practical way. And the problem with politics is that it is like a fire-and-forget missile. Once you elect someone you don't really have that much control over them until the next election unless they can be proven to do something illegal. Aside from that, one hardly knows the true moral character of the people they are voting for. How can you? You only know what you see and hear and both talk a good game..both slander each other...in the end, it basically comes down to a gut feeling, party allegiance, or...worst of all...hope- a form of spiritual/mental gambling for the powerless.
Banks obviously need to be reigned in but they are such a clear incentive to those who profit from them. Thus, just as one had to remove church from state, we have to find a way to remove the profit incentive from politics. Somehow empower these people while making them incorruptible. One way might be to keep them at our level and in constant contact, repour, and interaction with the people in terms of what they are doing and why they are doing it. Transparency should not have to be asked for and it is certainly not a privilege bestowed by those in power in a real democracy. It is inherent. Yes, there are things that need to be concealed...but let's not piggyback off the plausible.