The Psycho-Bubble

The last two decades have shown that bubbles are not only prevalent, but that they are dangerous. In the 1980’s the me generation rode a bubble of self indulgence rivaled only by that of that of the late 1960’s. The 1960’s imagery of Camelot and innocence was an idealistic bubble thought to be shattered by the violent decade. Yet the 1970 hippie movement was a bubble of idealism too. However, it slowly deflated as everyone grew tired of making love with each other because it came with strings attached, namely herpes and then AIDS.

The 1980’s “throw caution to the wind” attitude was a bubble. At the time the country thought it was large. That generation “hadn’t seen nothing yet.” The 1990’s computer dot-com boom made millions of dollars for people who owned and invested in companies. It was however, smoke and mirrors. The bubble was mammoth as companies raked in money that produced little. Their value so overblown that there was no where to fall but off of a cliff like it was 1929.

Still, America recovered and had faith in its system. Little did they know that since the 1960’s everything was ruled and regulated by something more sinister that corporate executives. Things were being run by emotion. Talk about volatility! The housing boom, created by sub prime mortgage financiers out to rake in billions, related to reality only in name. Everyone was getting a home (the great American dream) without having to work real hard for it. What could be wrong with that? Well, like a proverbial city on a hill, most everyone was dismayed when the FED popped that bubble. The hill under their houses and their feed took a nose dive.

Finally the bubble in energy last year had the price of gasoline rising from about 2.25 per gallon to over $4 per gallon. The friction became quickly obvious, unrest and worry rose, and the speculators drove the price up until the commodity resembled nothing based in reality. After July, the "pop" sound was swiftly followed by a "whoosh" and the bubble of that inflated delusion was over. Unfortunately, the whole financial sector which was built on mortgages that many people couldn’t afford, did the same. Wall Street was exposed for the “air pump” (or is that pimp?) that it really had become.

Now the latest hysteria is hysteria itself. Leading the charge down the hill is the new President. Every word out of his mouth is doom and gloom. We’re on the verge of catastrophe he says. His talk, he says, is an honest warning, not a method. He says he’s an optimist. Unfortunately, he sounds more like Jimmy Carter than Ronald Reagan. Obama has been drinking out of the same half empty glass since long before his Presidency. If this is leadership, someone needs to point out the direction he is headed; down.

Positive noise makes for productivity, and over time success. Being told that the world is going to come to an end just so you can get your agenda passed is political suicide, and the fear bubble is the first vestige of a fool. When the American populace wakes up it may be too late. The only hope to deflate the negative psycho bubble being inflated by the Administration and Democrats is for the entire Republican Party to pop it. Let’s hope they have a pin that’s big enough for the job before folks start jumping out of windows. After all it’s allegedly the worst economy since 1929 despite plenty of signs to the contrary.