Thomas Friedman would probably not get pied for his latest column for New York Times. On contrary, the generally liberal college students would welcome his latest ideas on the necessary change in the course in which the U.S. is headed. It has become a customary habit to blame the government for any situation, even if the government itself couldn’t have prevented it, like the current credit crunch or a “poor” state of the infrastructure.
First of all, it’s not the current government that is entirely responsible for the turmoil of the financial markets and the prices of gasoline. The monetary policy of the United States is a responsibility of the Fed, the institution that operates independently on any branch of state, and it was its impassiveness in raising interest rates that led to the sharp and bloody drop last August. It was not Bernanke’s impassiveness, but Greenspan’s in the years following the 9/11. From the Friedman’s side it’s a pure hypocrisy (or populism) when he in his books advocates the globalization and cites its numerous benefits for the American companies, whereas in NYT he decides to question it when the American banks get help from global players. (more…)
