Governments have a pretty good history when it comes to screwing up economies. Fixing them, that's another story. Herbert Hoover (eventually) and Franklin Roosevelt expended enormous effort trying to claw their way out of the Great Depression, and only blunted the worst of it while the whole planet rode the roller-coaster. Subsequent presidencies bobbed around like a cork on stormy seas as various economic troubles came and went, and frequently lost elections over them. The government -- any government -- doesn't run the economy, but the economy sometimes runs government, and can run it right out of town.
Viktor Orban's experiment in "illiberal democracy" in Hungary, which has looked a lot like a more-polite version of one-party autocracy with fancy trimmings to keep the EU from more than mild disapproval, may be about to relearn that lesson.
Here at home -- how 'bout that promised prosperity? Have groceries gotten any cheaper? How about utility bills? Has anyone's gazillionaire boss handed out big, fat raises, or are most of us fretting over our chances of being swept up in an Amazon-style massive layoff?
Promises of pie in the sky only work until the pie fails to arrive. And wow, is it ever failing. When the AI/data center bubble pops -- which it will -- the fallout is liable to be messy. Just ask SNAP beneficiaries, presently unbenefited thanks to the government shutdown.
Update
10 months ago
3 comments:
Gas and some food prices are down in my area from this time last year, and my income is as well. Not everyone is doing better, but not everyone is worse off either.
And I’ve come to think the more the government tinkers with the economy, the worse it mucks it up.
Gas, eggs, bacon, and pretty much all staples are up a lot in the Pacific Northwest. Yet T**** is saying, "Nope, that's not true". Like I can't see it for myself when I shop and don't get me started on the cost of coffee beans or lettuce.
Rising cost of lettuce; https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/APU0000FL2101
https://www.cnn.com/2025/10/24/politics/fact-check-grocery-prices-trump
The government is a lot like Glocks or AR pattern rifles, in that the less people tinker with them, the better they run. And we've gone from adding Shoot Gud plastic to full on Dremmeling.
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