Brian Gongol
What happens when you don't have a game plan? You lose.
An investment advisor blames the fall of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on the failure to plan, and it's probably a fair assessment. But the related worry is that the regulators who have stepped in don't have a plan for what happens next. This is an especially large problem because we have a gigantic debt burden in the United States -- much of it consumer debt -- and little of that debt is invested in capital improvements. It's fine to borrow when you're using the money to build something that will generate revenues or supply value for decades to come. But when you're borrowing to pay for things you've already consumed, then you're making a terrible (and non-durable) choice. It's possible that American debt has been inflated by the availability of cheap money from investors in other parts of the world who don't have enough good investment choices at home. But in the long term, debt has to be a matter of deliberate choice, not a default mode of operation. Perpetual operating indebtedness would never pass muster in a 100-year business plan.
The pop-vs.-soda divide is pretty clear
Galveston suspends water service
