I hate it, but I'm rooting for a continuing Wall Street meltdown

[Tom Rinaldo]

Real people, working people and retirees, are getting hurt. I know that. And sure. all people are real, I know that too. I don't begrudge anyone wanting to take a long anticipated vacation cruise, or having the means to buy a weekend cottage on a lake. I'm of limited means and retired, so I get how important an adequately funded IRA can be. But the money anyone has invested in the stock market aren't the funds needed to put food on their table this week. Money held in stocks aren't earmarked to pay the rent this coming May 1st. I regretfully conclude that meaningful pain is needed to compel the people of our nation to take dramatic actions now. We can not wait for midterm elections. So let that pain manifest on Wall Street.

The truth is that our nation, and our world, was in crisis before Trump imposed his massive tarries. Climate change is pushing us toward an environmental catastrophe, and the United States government has retreated from our commitment to fighting it.. Democracies have been in retreat world wide, autocracies are marching full speed ahead, and the United States is rapidly becoming the major case in point.

Freedom and justice can be deemed God given rights, but God isn't defending them for us, we have to do that work ourselves. Wake up calls can't be polite in a time of crisis. It's too tempting to too many to simply hit the snooze alarm and roll over. People have to jump out of bed and mobilize before we're engulfed in a four alarm fire. At that point it's too late.

So let alarm bells ring on every floor. Let the sirens wail and automatic sprinkler systems drench us. There can't be business as usual if our businesses burn down.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

1. This makes no sense.

But the money anyone has invested in the stock market aren't the funds needed to put food on their table this week. Money held in stocks aren't earmarked to pay the rent this coming May 1st. I regretfully conclude that meaningful pain is needed to compel the people of our nation to take dramatic actions now.

People retire every day, and many of them access their pensions, retirement accounts and other investments immediately. People are definitely using those funds to put food on their tables and pay rents -- or would have.

What dramatic actions are you imagining will come of this?

[Tom Rinaldo]

2. Clearly, I differ with you

I chose my words carefully, I intentionally used phrases such as "this week" for food, and "this May 1st" for rent. I stand by what I said. Essentially no one keeps their food money for the coming week, or their rent for this coming month, in stocks.

If our nation is going to hell that's where we will end up without a dramatic course change. And hell is what it is, the best made retirement plans will, for most, do little to mitigate against that. A stock market crash can be addressed, at least partially, by meaningful short term political action. For an obvious example, Republicans in Congress can vote to retake the power to set or eliminate tariffs from Trump, restoring that power to Congress where it belongs. Will they? Obviously I don't know, but just as obviously they will be more likely to do so if most of their rich political donors scream bloody hell over the collapse of the stock market.