I’m not really sure what to make of this “economic crisis” we’re apparently in. On the one hand, it is rather unnerving to watch a number of banks give up the ghost, including Washington Mutual (based right here in Seattle), but on the other hand, it doesn’t seem to be impacting me at all. Sure, I’m having a hard time getting a job, but, considering my past luck in procuring employment, that’s not surprising in the least.
It’s an interesting coincidence that I’m taking a history course right now that’s dealing with the economic situation of the 1930s, including the Great Depression and Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal. There were numerous bank failures and credit problems during that time period, just as there are now. It’s a bit eerie, but I have noticed that the proposed solutions are nothing like FDR’s solutions. Of course, the situation today isn’t nearly as dire (unemployment is still around 6%, not the whopping 25+% of the early thirties), but I have yet to hear any decent explanation of the bailout that just died in Congress. Why $700 billion? What would that money be used for? What good would that do? No one is really telling. Contrast that to FDR’s fireside chats over the radio, where he explained to the American public in straightforward terms what the government was doing to deal with the depression. President Bush’s recent speech about the economy wasn’t exactly informative or reassuring, even if he did avoid using the word “depression”.
The thing to remember through all of this, though, is that self-regulation by corporations (even banks) is not necessarily a bad thing, just as regulation by the federal government isn’t necessarily a good thing. I don’t know how this situation will be resolved, but I know that more government interference in the market is not the right answer. After all, the Great Depression didn’t end because of the New Deal. For better or for worse, it came to an end due to the onset of World War 2, when industry picked up to improve the U.S. military. Hopefully we won’t need any such thing this time around.
I recently became aware of a website called GOG.com. It’s brand new and still in an early-access beta (it’s due to be opened up to everyone soon, I believe), but it looks freakin’ awesome. The idea is this: you can buy and download popular, classic PC games (think Descent, Fallout, Freespace 2), all guaranteed to work on Windows Vista or XP, and all DRM free. That’s right: no DRM. I suppose that’s not insanely attractive to most people, but to the people who hate to deal with installation limits (à la Spore), CD keys, or online verification servers, it’s a real kicker. I was able to wrangle an early-access key, so I’ve been checking the place out. I haven’t bought or downloaded anything, so I can’t report on how well that works, but I can say that the interface is snazzy, the selection is great (better than what you can find in the local gaming store’s bargain bin, that’s for sure), and the prices are very nice ($10 and under for pretty much everything).
It really looks like a good deal. I’m interested to see how much the game catalog there expands and how well things work out. Also, if anyone is really interested in scoping it out, I’ve got a beta key available to the first commenter who asks. Alternately, you can put your email in at the main site and hope they send you a key.
I don’t get the hatred a lot of people hold towards restaurant chains and franchises, like McDonald’s or Subway. I mean, if you want to support your local burger or sandwich shop, that’s fine. But when you ridicule other people for actually liking places like that, that’s a pretty big problem. Personal choice and all that.
I’ve been on the receiving end of this sort of thing before. I was walking into a Subway once when I was stopped by someone hanging outside the restaurant, who accosted me for going to Subway when there was a local sandwich place just a few doors down. I had actually gone to that shop before, but I had never noticed a significant quality difference between their sandwiches and Subway’s sandwiches. They tasted pretty much the same. The kicker for me, however, was the fact that I could get a foot-long at Subway for $5. At the local shop, the cost was $8 for a similar foot-long. I may sound a bit callous for saying this, but I’m not going to spend an extra $3 just to support a local shop. I’m going to go for the best value, and I can usually find that at chains or franchises (franchises that, ironically, are often owned by the mom and pop types of people).
To be perfectly honest, I suppose I can see the reasoning behind disliking chains. They undercut prices, which causes small, mom and pop places to go out of business because they can’t afford to lower their prices. But that’s capitalism. Competition inevitably results in there being a winner and a loser (or multiple losers). Eventually, a new competitor arises that can actually compete on the same level as the winner. It’s not pretty, and it’s certainly not fair, but that’s life.
Yeah, it’s harsh. Probably harsher than I originally meant it to be. But my main point is that if I want to get a burger at McDonald’s instead of that place down the street, that should be my choice. I shouldn’t have to deal with people pestering me about it.
Can I just say: please, I don’t want to hear anything more about Sarah Palin. I already know she’s a horrible pick for McCain and I certainly know I won’t be voting for that ticket come November. Yet I’m still subjected to every detail about her life, from her religion to her children to her hunting hobby. Seriously. Stop focusing on the negatives of Sarah Palin and focus on the positives of the other candidates, namely Barack Obama. Or even third party candidates. They can’t get exposure if everyone’s too busy complaining about Palin and McCain.
Ugh, I can’t wait until this election is over. I doubt the country will be better off no matter what candidate, but at least I won’t have to endure the barrage of mudslinging that accompanies every major election.
