You can truly see the Times a changin' with the end of Bush era. Bob Herbert, who has basically been writing a "George Bush is bad" column for eight years running, is sounding more like a columnist should. He has this proposal for adding a transaction fee to the sale or transfer of stocks, bonds and "the seemingly endless variety of exotic financial instruments that have been in the news so much lately." The idea is to curb, or at least make money from, speculators who trade constantly and "treat the market like a casino." David Brooks, meanwhile, has withdrawn from the public fray to write a brooding ode to theologian Richard John Neuhaus, who passed away last week.Joseph Epstien writes in Newsweek that the Bernie Madoff scandal could end up being good for American Jewry, but only if wealthy Jews to stop acting like Episcopalians. Specifcally, Epstein says that Jews should not play golf.
Yeah, it sounds like it could be a hackneyed stand-up comedy premise about all Jewish men being Woody Allen-style neuortics, but there's more going on here. "Long locked out of the WASP social and commercial institutions" in America, Epstein writes how Jews formed counterpart institutions; universities, law firms and, the real nexus of American power, country clubs with golf courses.
But he says something about golf is "unseemly for Jews, who have traditionally been accustomed to taking themselves seriously." A Jew, "should be studying, arguing, thinking, working, making money, contemplating why God has put him through so many trials. A phrase like 'dogleg to the left' should never pass his lips." Funny.
The experts always know best. Check out what Those Who Know have to say in The Worst Part of the Recession is Behind Us from Forbes. Phew! That's a relief. Don't you feel better? Uh-oh. Wait. Hold on a second. Here is MarketWatch.com with No Way We'll See a Recovery in 2009. Dang. Just when we thought we had it turned around.
