Liberty Maven

I’ve been a big fan of Peter Schiff ever since he endorsed Ron Paul early in the primary campaign. The Washington Post has published an article by him that quickly, clearly, and directly sums up the United States economic situation. As I read it I could not help but nod my head in agreement with each passing sentence. If you read nothing else regarding our financial situation please read this.

Amid the chaos of recent days, as the federal government has taken gargantuan steps to stabilize the financial markets, realigning the U.S. economic system in the process, comes a nearly universal consensus: This crisis resulted from government reluctance to regulate the unbridled greed of Wall Street. Many economists and market participants who were formerly averse to government interference agree that a more robust regulatory framework must be constructed to cage the destructive forces of capitalism.

For the political left, which has long championed the need for such limits, this crisis is the opportunity of a lifetime.

Absent from such conclusions is the central role the government played in creating the crisis. Yes, many Wall Street leaders were irresponsible, and they should pay. But they were playing the distorted hand dealt them by government policies. Our leaders irrationally promoted home-buying, discouraged savings, and recklessly encouraged borrowing and lending, which together undermined our markets.

Read the whole beautiful thing right here.