Exposing Faux Capitalism

On Infowars.com today, I saw the shocking headline “Barney Frank: We Are Trying On Every Front To Increase The Role Of Government.”

That’s not a controversial statement to anyone who has been following the number and nature of the bills that have been tabled and passed in the House of Representatives since January 2009. However, it would be quite the open admission from a prominent American politician, and I was therefore surprised. It would be red meat even to many politically centrist Americans.

Sure enough, he did say that.  And more. The full quote was, “We are trying on every front to increase the role of government in the regulatory area.”

Those four extra words make all the difference in the world, in terms of what Rep. Frank said. It’s the difference between openly declaring what has been and is taking place overall, for quite some time, versus what is taking place now, in a specific area. Very few would argue that total government non-regulation of credit default swaps (one of the most speculative financial instruments ever devised), is a good thing. The world-wide derivative meltdown of 2008, stemming in large part from unregulated credit default swaps, would indicate otherwise.

I agree with one commenter on the Infowars.com post that their quotation is misleading. But don’t let that make you rely on Rep. Frank or any other American politician openly declaring what you already know to be true. Namely, what your government and representatives have been doing for quite some time — trying on every front to increase the role of government.