Is this how it ends?

[rose-colored-coolaid]

Just saw this article today.

http://www.slate.com/id/2201950/

The question posed is, is the global collapse of all financial markets our fault? I think that kind of misses the bigger question, which is after all is said and done how long will it be before America is able to take a leadership role again?

We've destroyed our moral high ground via torture and unconstitutional suspension of habias corpus.
We provoked a war in a nearly unilateral manner.
Our chief import (debt) has proven to be toxic.
We are the lynch pin that set off a global market collapse.

Is this just idol speculation? Let's put it in a different perspective; a hypothetical situation with China. Imagine China seizes a number of Tibetans and holds them for 5 years without trial. Now, let them ship tainted baby formula, clothing, and personal electronics, but when people complain they respond "meh, it's your own fault for buying our junk. Here's a 1% discount, and let's call it even". Next, pretend they declare war on Saudi Arabia, unilaterally because they need access to their oil. Finally, let China declare that it wants to cash in all the T-Bills and other foreign debt that they hold, creating a massive world-wide economic catastrophe as leveraged positions must be deleveraged, taxes raised, and benefits slashed.

It's enough to make you pretty unsure about China right? Well, that's us in the eyes of the rest of the world.

[The Tim]

The tangent on torture has nothing to do with the housing bubble, and was therefore split to a new thread: in Everything Else.

Please continue that discussion there.

[rose-colored-coolaid]