What Is This World Coming To?

Obama said some of the job-seekers who may normally have gone to the financial sector would shift to other areas of the economy, such as engineering.

“Wall Street will remain a big, important part of our economy, just as it was in the ’70s and the ’80s. It just won’t be half of our economy,” he said.

“We don’t want every single college grad with mathematical aptitude to become a derivatives trader.”

For a guy whose mantra is ‘change’ he sure spends a lot of time looking backwards.  Somebody should point out to him that the defining events of the 70’s and 80’s were when Carter plunged the nation into recession by taxing income producers and when Reagan pulled the nation out by repealing them.

Part of Obama’s regulatory reforms include the creation of a new “systemic risk regulator” with broad powers to seize large non-bank financial firms, such as insurers, hedge funds or private equity companies, if they are deemed to threaten the stability of the financial system.

Some people might call this socialism.  But I think fascism is a better fit.