Justice Breyer Sells His Stocks, and He's Not Alone:
Breyer is selling to avoid future conflicts of interests. Meanwhile, investors around the world have been selling today because they're pessimistic about the future:
The Dow Jones industrials skidded more than 800 points and fell below 10,000 for the first time in four years, while the credit markets remained under strain. Financial markets took a despairing view of the future Monday, seeing contagion in a credit crisis that threatens to cascade through economies globally despite government efforts to provide relief.
Investors around the world have come to the sobering realization that the Bush administration's $700 billion rescue plan won't work quickly to unfreeze the credit markets. Global banks, hobbled by wrong-way bets on mortgage securities, remain starved for cash as credit has dried up.
Best. Excuse. Evar.
First, Justice Breyer is obviously a very smart man, and very knowledgeable of the law. Now we have proof that this doesn't translate into economic intelligence or expertise.
Second, this is better than not having a bailout...how?
True, conflicts don't come up that often, and when they do, they're usually not that big a deal. But it seems like a pretty easy good-governance reform that woud avoid some 4-4 ties and the possibility of a case with multiple recusals. Is there a downside that I'm not seeing?
He took the conflict-of-interest thing way too seriously, especially for a guy who didn't pay his nanny's social security taxes back in the day.
Seriously, though, to echo the point: where are all of those who pointed to the 700 point dip following the House's rejection of the bailout as evidence that the bailout was needed? Let me guess: the drop would have been even worse without the bailout, right? It must be nice to be able to explain everything!
With the regulatory structure overseeing stock markets today, I don't think we would see a record percentage decline--I think the markets would be shut down or trading heavily restricted before anything like a 2,250 decline occurred.
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