Video: “Social unrest” looms in the mind of Wall of Street
It’s pretty obvious to anyone paying attention a majority of Americans oppose the bailout plan passed last night by the Senate and heading toward the House.
As discussed here and here,many Americans seem to understand the “real” economy — i.e., MainStreet — will suffer if the plan fails, but they still oppose it andview it as a bailout for Wall Street “fat cats.”
“I’ve lost mymoney because of these idiots, now they want me to subsidize theirlosses too???,” Yahoo! Finance user “hoser48” wrote yesterday. “They can go to hell with the common man, we will all live together as equals then. A bailout is not the answer.”
Clearly that sentiment isn’t universal, and Monday’s 778 Dow dive did change many people’s view. But it’s also true the mood in the country is ugly, and it didn’t happen overnight.
Todd Harrison, CEO of Minyanville.com, has been warning about the threat of “societal acrimony” for some time.
The last few years highlighted the chasm between the ‘have’s’ and ‘have not’s,'” he writes.”While the former middle class has struggled for some time, thecomeuppance of the upper echelon has arrived. The voluntary thrift thatwill now manifest as a result of this culture shock will permeate analready fragile socioeconomic structure.”
In the accompanyingvideo, Harrison and I discuss what this sentiment means for investors(lower appetite for risk) and society more broadly, including thepotential for social unrest.