SHERMAN FREDERICK: Spend, spend, spend, spend - Opinion

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Feb. 22, 2009
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

SHERMAN FREDERICK: Spend, spend, spend, spend

Crazy as a pet chimp

SHERMAN FREDERICK
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I'm going to keep this simple.

I'm no economist. If you wanted to know with dead certainty what stocks to pick, or not to pick, all you needed to do to become an instant success -- except for a few lucky guesses on early Internet stocks -- was to do exactly the opposite of me.

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That disclosure made, all Americans know we're in hard economic times. It's easy to articulate the symptoms, but hard to know the cure. The smartest thing I've heard anyone say about it came last fall when Sen. Harry Reid criticized President Bush's emergency "bailout" plan, saying: "No one knows what to do."

Since then, of course, Harry and virtually all Democrats inside the Beltway miraculously experienced a post-election epiphany. Now they know exactly and with certainty what to do to fix the economy -- spend, spend, spend and spend.

They may be right. Perhaps we must spend like a drunken Democrat to blunt this recession and, as is evident from the pork-a-thon "stimulus" bill, it matters not how we spend it. Saving endangered mice, battling sexually transmitted diseases, remodeling unneeded schools, or building bullet trains no one knew they wanted, the point is to spend like Chicagoans vote -- early and often.

My worry is that this unprecedented deficit spending is the bad-judgment equivalent to that 70-year-old woman in Connecticut who kept a 200-pound chimpanzee as a house pet.

You know the story, I am sure. Sandra Herold raised Travis the chimp from a baby. Kept him for 14 years. Travis slept in Sandra's bed, combed her hair and performed household chores.

Travis loved to watch the Yankees baseball team on television and, according to reports, Sandra fed Travis lobster, steak and Xanax-laced hot tea.

Then last week, Travis snapped. The once cute and useful chimp burst into a crazed rage. No one knows why. It might have been the Xanax, or lack thereof. Or, maybe he freaked out when Yankee third baseman Alex Rodriguez copped to steroid use. Who knows?

What we do know is that what happened next was nothing but pain and misery for all.

Travis terrorized the owner and then attacked a neighbor, biting off her hands and mauling her face. Sandra hit the chimp with a shovel and stabbed him with a kitchen knife, to no avail.

Finally, police arrived. Travis attacked them, too, pinning them inside a squad car before they shot and killed chimpzilla.

President Obama, his tax-cheatin' financial guru and congressional acolytes such as Sen. Reid who only 90 days ago didn't know what the hell to do, now claim they can tame the recession by spending the United States into a deep budget deficit, then pay for it by -- drum roll, please -- printing more money.

I may not be the smartest financial guy on the planet, but I feel like that's a plan not too far off from sleeping with a 200-pound chimp. Economists smarter than me say the consequence of spend-n-print-o-nomics may keep the realities of the recession at bay for a while, but at the risk of fooling around with the long-term value of the dollar.

Controlled, the debt can be managed and then billed to the grandkids. It's risky, but it can be done. But the slightest change or sudden move can cause the value of a dollar to go berserk.

And the next thing you know, just like the Travis incident, everybody's in danger of getting his or her economic faces ripped off.

That's as simple as I can make it.

Sherman Frederick (sfrederick@reviewjournal.com) is publisher of the Las Vegas Review-Journal and president of Stephens Media.

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Please enter your name Name: Please enter your email Email: Please enter a comment COMMENTS : (word count limit is 300) You have reached the maximum number of words allowed Current Word Count: Note: Comments made by reporters and editors of the Las Vegas Review-Journal are presented with a yellow background. Sherm Frederick wrote on February 27, 2009 03:42 PM: Hey, you were the one who wrote I should leave the Democratic Party. Johnathan L. Abbinett wrote on February 27, 2009 09:03 AM: Sherm, Sherm, Sherm! I can tell you that the far-left looney tunes have become marginalized in the Democratic Party. Sure, we have few nut-cases but they are not in any positions of leadership and they don't chair any commmittees - the vast majority of the Democratic Party are centrist that lean left on social issues and lean right on conservation! As for communism, I think you are off the mark here - your complaint might better be voiced against socialism - there are many of us that believe in a socialized democracy of republic states - because we care deeply about the less fortunate, the disabled, the elderly and children in need in our diverse society! So, think what you will, but if you want to imply that I'm a communist - that is way off the mark and a joke! Geeze, Sherm, I'm a former professional soldier and I was hunting down and killing communist when I was 18! I served honorably for 22 years in the U. S. Army, and I'm now a very well respected Veteran's Advocate, Activist and Columnist - and I've earned the respect of liberal, moderate and conservative Democrats and Republicans alike! Abbinett is a communist? That is just hilarious! Because, nothing could be further from the truth! The truth is I am a very INDEPENDENT, somewhat leaning Libertarian, liberal, moderate and conservative DEMOCRAT (depending on the issue in question) - which is the case with the majority of Nevada Democrats! There are big differences between communism and socialism Sherm - you might want to go back to do a little homework review? I can assure that I am a "purple patriot" and All-American mutt of French, English, Native American and Creo descent! I'd bet we, (including Tom Mitchell), actually hold many issues in common? Mark Schaffer wrote on February 26, 2009 04:12 PM: "Are you now or have you ever been a member of the communist party?" Hey Sherm, Name names. Just who in the Democratic Party is a communists. Come to think of it, can you define what a communist is??? Sherm Frederick wrote on February 25, 2009 02:26 PM: I'm not the problem. It's the communists in the Democratic Party who are the problem. That said, I must say, you do sound so very "open and inclusive". Johnathan L. Abbinett wrote on February 25, 2009 11:21 AM: YOU Sherm are a "registered Democrat" - well, that just goes to show how open and inclusive the Democratic Party is - and says little about YOU! We do have a serious problem with many who just check the "D" box on their voter registration form - and no almost nothing about the Democratic Platform - you may want to read that sometime - O.K.? Those that don't know, and don't truly support our platform are called D.I.N.O.'s (Democrats In Name Only) - so, please, be candid and honest and just call yourself what you truly are a DINO! We need REALLY GOOD DEMOCRATS! Why anyone would join an organization and publicly admit they are "not a very good (one)" member of that group smacks of mediocrity and insincerity! If you're really not serious about your political party affiliation Sherm you should just check the "other" box! Frankly, I would have thought you were a Libertarian leaning Republican from the ideas you write! Oh, wait, is there a possibility you REALLY ARE SOMETHING ELSE? Well, that' why we call them DINO'S! hss46 wrote on February 24, 2009 04:35 PM: Seriously folks, why was it alright for Bush to spend 700B on two wars with no oversight and to spend $700 on bank bailouts with no oversights, both of which were deficit financed but 'hidden' but doing them through off budget appropriations but G-D forbid a democrat deficit spends and save us from those tax and spend, chimpanzee keeping crazies. Please will one of you conservative geniuses explain that to me? hss46 wrote on February 24, 2009 04:32 PM: Sherm: Forgive the late response but I was out of town and my laptop battery went on me. I really liked this piece Sherm. The first part is maybe the best I've ever read from the RJ. Let me quote the good part: "I'm no economist." Nuff Said! Damn, a bunch of ppl already wrote that! Well like I said sorry for being late. linpc68 wrote on February 23, 2009 10:43 PM: Hmmm. . .dadling. . . "You folks in Nevada should be embarrassed to death by Reid. . .what good has he brought you?" Gee, you didn't already have your job at Yucca Mtn lined up, did you, dadling? (and you never will!) Sen. Reid has helped bring us President Obama, and you guys just CANNOT get over it! Get with the plan, and try to be an American, not a "Repuglican." If not, some of you may bring lobotomies back into practice! (Sherm, start looking over that "faux Democrat-registered" shoulder of yours!) dadling wrote on February 23, 2009 09:57 PM: Sounds like common sense to me... However, Reid, Pelosi and Obama seem rather short of this essential trait. They continue to come out with more and more stupid sounding things almost daily...doesn't and hasn't inspired any confidence from me, or the market, or the people on the street.... Polls don't mean anything...popularity means nothing.....the chimp was popular....until he had to be shot...!! You folks in Nevada should be embarrassed to death by Reid...what good has he brought you? Jose Sanchez wrote on February 23, 2009 08:33 PM: You're right about a few things: (1) you're no economist, and (2) you're not the smartest financial guy on the planet. In fact, let's try to get a more accurate statement: (1) you know nothing about economics, (2) you know nothing about the economic plan of Obama, (3) you are intellectually dishonest by presenting Obama's plan as printing more money to cover the debt, and (4) you're over all not very bright. But you do write an entertaining article, and I guess that's why so many dumb Republicans look up to idiots like you! Stupid is as stupid does! Read All Comments