America Will Overcome Madoff, Blagojevich Scandals and the Crash
It is a characteristic of the American pendulum that it rarely stops in the middle. Hence we have periods where we believe that we have annulled the very law of gravity, then times when we believe that the apocalypse is at hand. We need no miracles. We need to catch our breath, setting aside the sort of hubris that overtook us in the 1990s and the current despair that is driving some of the more vulnerable among us to pray for heavenly deliverance. So Alan Greenspan was not a God, and his pauses before congressional committees were only, well, pauses. Beyond magic and derivatives, we may return to simple reason and to J. P. Morgan's belief in character.
- Read more by Fouad Ajami.
- Read more about the economy.
- Read more about globalization.
Reader Comments
Greenspan no Ayn Rand "disciple"
"In Alan we trusted, but he turned out to be the Wizard of Oz, just a disciple of Ayn Rand."
If he were a disciple, he might have put some of her ideas into action. Instead, he betrayed her ideas with every move he made.
See http://www.capmag.com/article.asp?ID=5353
Ajami's "excellent" essay
Not only are Ajami's conclusions off the mark as usual, they are even more pretentious sounding than his usual comments. If he is remarkable for any skill, I would say it's sophistry.
AS USUAL - AN EXCELLENT ESSAY
Well written and on target.
A couple of comments;
1. You mention, positively, that America is a country of laws. Well, that was once true. But we are now in an era of judicial activism - where personal ideology corrupts and distorts the law. This is what comes of the idea that there is no truth or ideal morality - Simply subjective morality based on populist beliefs about what constitutes progress and truth - A tyranny of the skeptical and relativist masses.
2. You say, "I am irredeemably secular,"... Allow me to now be skeptical - a man with your gifts of intellect and logic may indeed find redemption... Sometimes you can't avoid it.
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