As "good" as Reagan was in some ways, his push for almost carte blanche "deregulation" of most industries set the stage for a lot of the instability , and erosion of the American worker's benefit packages . . . retirement, etc.

couple this with Alan Greenspan's dogged faith, as late as this last week, of the "SELF-regulation" of the financial markets, and we wind up with current debacle. (We can't blame Reagan for the unwarranted war against Iraq.)

Industry "self-regulation" simply doesn't work as has been proven. We just need adequate regulation to keep business on a reasonable and stable compeitive basis. Over regulation would be as stiffling as a recessions/depression.

Everyone simply wants to exloit the markets to the maximum allowable point, even to the point of self destruction. (Of course then they want the government [sic. the tax payer] to "bail them out.) I've for reasonable regualtion, and the capitalistic operation of the Free Market Economy. those who irresponsibly take too risky of investments bear the results . . . probfit or loss . . . or bankruptcy.

The same goes for irresponsible home buyers who should have bought smaller, more modest homes that they could afford. For every "LOSER" there was a "WINNER". This is just a redistribution of the wealth; and a massive disruption of the economy. The risk takers are banking on being "made well by "bail outs" at the tax payers expense.

That is not legally.

see GeorgeSoros.com for more on this topic

Teaching Americans how to bail themselves out and become fiscally responsible and financially educated should be the mission- no one is taught anything in school and no one who can take advantage of that ignorance is offering to teach them either - we are!
http://liveyourdreams.designingfutures.tv

George Soros want to blame everything else except his gas guzzling limousine that he swears he would never give up... It is always the Big Oil that dunk us into the water and out of it every time since the first oil shortage of 1973. Because of that , we were forced to make crazy changes ever since in efforts to compensate for our ever stubborn gas guzzling habits. Now look at GM and Ford hanging limp under the branch, yet we still swore that imports are better made ... Our economy are writing the skies as long as we are too stubborn to adapt to new realities. We rely on our might to make everything A-OK! I am on course to right our economy and the very last thiung I need to hear is another billionaire making bullshit condensates...

Wow, Reagan laissez-faire? If Reagan was laissez-faire then I am Mickey Mouse. Oh only if he was laissez-faire, we wouldn't be in this mess now. George Soros is among those super wealthy who benefit at the government trough. Needless to say that he will blame anyone and everyone except the government who is bailing him and his buddies out now. Since when do we have laissez-faire ? Not since President Jackson I would say. The government has its mitts in everything. I can't shower without some regulation being involved or even flush my toilet. To have so much socialism and then blame the business cycles that occur on capitalism is like saying the wet sidewalk caused the rain. Capitalism didn't cause this boom or this bust. The government causes it, they always do. The Federal Reserve is the main culprit when it comes the the credit crackup. They caused the Great Depression by inflating in the 20s and they caused this calamity by Greenspans inflation in the 80s and 90s. To say that a committee in Washington D.C. that determines the value of our currency and what our currency is to be is in anyway remotely related to Capitalism and laissez-faire is ridiculous. If we had true laissez-faire then interest rates and money supply would be determined by a market of savers, lender and borrowers. The interest rate would reflect the amount of genuine savings in the accounts available for lending. Likewise the money that would be used would be chosen by the market through a process of free choice. In every transaction each participant would have to come to an agreement as to what would be used as money and be considered payment. Everyone would be free to accept or reject any form and type of money they want. Is that even close to what we have in place today. I suggest you read the Communist Manifesto, especially the portion about the centralization of credit. Marx would be proud of us, and Soros think we have laissez-faire, what a moron !!

If Soros has so much money... let him bail the economy and the irresponsible home buyers out of the mess. He has enough money to spend on spreading chaos.

Soros has a huge agenda.........so Im sorry but I dont believe a word that comes out of his mouth.

This is nonsense. The problem was, and is, too much government inteference. The Fed created two bubbles--the stock and housing bubbles--by keeping interest rates too low. Rates should find their own level in an unregulated, competitive market. Now the same Fed that got us into the mess will dig us into a deeper hole.
The only benefit will be that with recession and depression people get a better sense of reality. Big cars, expensive electronics, self indulgent "diseases" like fibromyalgia, chronic back pain, and HSDD will be eliminated as people are forced to concentrate on the basics.

The technical charts reflect the market is likely to head 5% to 10% higher before testing the resistance levels. So, I don't see anything incredible regarding G Soros market call regarding the market possibly stalling. But I do take issue that if G Soros was on top of his game, why was he not able to single out the CDO situation before it became an actual issue? And why is G Soros not able to be more specific in what would really cause the next financial issue globally which could then be solved from his all-encompassing knowledge and understanding of the financial environment?

As a south florida buyer, I bought a house that is less 100k now. but I could afford the hit. But, I saw couples half my age, with half my income ,getting homes,with no money down,110% financing, with no proof of income. by the banks,who sold the loans within 30 days to other banks. I predicted this mess, and now we have years before we can get back again.

Yes, it's the worst since the depression and I feel that much of is to be blamed on the oil prices. True, naive pepole fell for low or no interest rate mortgages that are now killing them but, the interest rates would not have gone up had the prices of everything not soared. Underlying most of the prices rises is the price of oil.

we are in a recession. i cannot believe that Bush can have such big smiles on his face when photographed. He IS the worst President this country has ever seen. He has done nothing but ruin our morals and morale and standing and economy etc etc. I wonder how much drug damage was done to his brain from the alcohol and coke in his earlier days. Apparently a lot. I would not want to show myface. And god only knows...his wife isn't much smarter or brighter than he is.

I'd certainly trust the economic braintrusts of President Reagan & PM Thatcher over komrade Soros whom is, by all measures, a devout socialist & virtual communist whom made his sums at the expense of the "lesser" amongst us. Lay more of the "blame" upon irresponsible consumers, rather, in this era of unaccountability, as well as upon the rancid mismanagement of our still-strong economy
by the likes of James Earl Carter & Alfred Kahn, amongst others, back in the 1970s. So there.

I am so sick of rich people like SOROS. Let THEM have to struggle and live from pay to check. They are so full of solutions etc. Take their money away from them and let them live in REALITY. I bet it wouldn't last for long!

Note to Harrison above, plz:

Industries DO self-monitor & regulate, for the most part & by all practical means. There are exceptions, of course, but overall it's much better for all if the heavy hands of inept gov't --- esp' liberal gov't --- stays clear of the business of making money. Market volatility comes w/ the turf & has since its creation, but it's always trended upwards & will do so again. More "regular" USA citizens have become wealthy via mutual funds & the investments made by their "eroded" pension funds SINCE 1980 than before it. Do the math!!
*P.S.: Bubba Clinton was "hands-off" in the 1990s and the tech' bubble, amongst others, resulted. It burst, however, leaving the fittest amongst the survivors. It's the nature of things. If it scares ya', either grow up or move away and become an aboriginal hermit...

Semper Fi', Mac.

Soro is a former board member of the Council of Foreign Relations. Of course he is going to blame someone other than the federal reserve for this fine mess we're in. Go to youtube and look up Lindsey Williams. He put out a video in 2006 that will open a lot of eyes.

What does he mean, "as the United States moves closer to a recession." Another prognosticator that is behind the times. By the time these experts figure out we've been in one for about 4-5 months now, it will be over. If the mortgage industry can weather a couple of more bad months, turn around will occur around September. The major cause of the economic problem, besides the mortgage industry, is energy. If prices had stabilized around $3 a gallon we wouldn't see this crunch, but speculators have caused this. You already see as oil prices fall, speculators quickly sell to take their profits. Soros does have some good ideas about reform, but he's just another guesser when it comes to the economy.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure this out. Prices are going up and income is going down. Companies aren't happy with making a profit, they wan't a huge profit. Things like insurance and workmans comp are way to expensive. Then along comes Uncle Sam and taxes your money over and over. Take a carpenter for example. They make 15-30 dollars an hour, add several hundred a week for workmans comp...company overhead....that carpenter just doesn't produce that much to make him profitable. We are in deep shyt...the ballon is about to bust.

Blame it on the Republicans! Yea, canned answer! I guess he wants us to go back to 1979. Does anyone remember 18% mortgage interest rates?

George Soros is anti American, wealthy and a trouble-maker...Forget him