New York, ‘Drop Dead’ and President Ford

Infamous ‘Drop Dead’ Was Never Said by Ford

excerpt:

“Ford was good for New York, because he made us clean up our act,” said Henry J. Stern, a former parks commissioner and city councilman.

People may want to look at history when judging whether or not to do bailouts.  New York survived and thrived, even though the people at the time demanded financial assistance from Washington.

Recently, bailouts have become a thriving industry in Washington.  Might this historical example show as an example so that a case can be made for stopping this?  All that seems to have been accomplished with these bailouts is that Washington has amassed more power while the rest of the country stagnates.  The highest per capita income is now in Washington DC, not on Wall Street.

The worst effect of bailouts is the moral hazard.  People need to learn from their mistakes.  Protecting people from their mistakes only invites repetition of the same behavior that caused the problem in the first place.