You missed a dandy Snubwatch opportunity last night, when Obama cited support from Kevin Rudd and Gordon Brown when challenged about centre-left governments that weren’t engaging in stimulus spending. Support from the right-leaning Canadian government would no doubt have been mentioned, if only Canada was truly Back. Snubbage!

I’m starting to question the wisdom of making the “Snubwatch” a regular feature.

The article was in the National Post (the printed, paper version!!!!!) this morning.

Better pay pretty close attention to what Obama is saying, because if he’s wrong then you and your children are going to be deeply impoverished, maybe for decades.

banks have stopped lending

No they haven’t. But they’ve slowed down the amount they’re lending to people and companies who have no realistic prospect of paying back the loans.

If people in other countries cannot spend, markets dry up.

In his fairytale Keynesian world, spending equals wealth. He thinks that savings have no purpose because governments can simply print money and shower it on deserving businesses (as determined by politicians). But the truth is, if nobody saves then wealth dries up. If he keeps printing money and then telling people what to do with the money then nobody will bother to save a dime. Too much trouble.

And if we continue to let financial institutions around the world act recklessly and irresponsibly

Er, what was the complaint again, about “banks have stopped lending” ?

we call upon our partners to join us with a sense of urgency and common purpose.

Sounds like socialist nonsense to me. A new ComIntern? A Greater World Co-Prosperity Sphere? Besides the usual objections to central economic planning (e.g.. it kills millions of people), it’s un-American to say the least – America became the richest and freest nation on earth by keeping as much power as possible out of the President’s hands and avoiding foreign entanglements, such as military treaties, managed trade and monetary agreements. But don’t worry. The new rules are not going to be dictated by the world’s biggest debtors. They’re going to be laid down by the biggest creditors. By the people with savings, in other words.

Our leadership is grounded in a simple premise

“Our” leadership? Queen Victoria would not be amused.

the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act – the most dramatic effort to jump-start job creation and lay a foundation for growth in a generation

I think the national pork and new welfare entitlement act has been dealt with already elsewhere, no need to poke its stinking carcass at this time.

restoring the flow of credit that is the lifeblood of a growing global economy

Dear Barack … “Credit” is not the lifeblood of the economy. Private property and free trade are its lifeblood. And don’t confuse government-inflated currency and credit created out of thin air with savings. Savings are what result when free trade and private property are respected, and they are the foundation of wealth.

we have an obligation to extend a hand to countries and people who face the greatest risk. If we turn our backs on them, the suffering caused by this crisis will be enlarged, and our own recovery will be delayed because markets for our goods will shrink further.

IMF basket cases have never been a particularly good market for anyone’s exports, which is the same as saying that they’ve never been a very good source of imports. Ix-nay on the global elfare-way. “It’s a trap!”

We must put an end to the reckless speculation and spending beyond our means

Hey I just noticed that around every other sentence he decries the lack of spending and credit, then the next sentence he complains about the problems caused by reckless spending and credit. Do we look that stupid? Hello? Can he see or hear anything beyond his teleprompter and his ear bud?

I know that America bears our share of responsibility for the mess that we all face.

More of the “we” stuff. Ah, no, “America” didn’t create the mess, “American politicians” and the large corporations who control them bear most of the responsibility. That means Bush, Obama, Pelosi, the Clintons, Barney Frank, and their pals. It’s a reckless credit and spending thing.

we need not choose between a chaotic and unforgiving capitalism and an oppressive government-run economy.

Actually we do have to choose. Looks like “we” chose ‘B’.

Google “flying sharks”.

This is not a snub, it’s an honour to be ignored by the Huffington Post.

Hopey-changy refers to”unforgiving capitalism”.
Wonder if he’s talking about the contracts his basketball buddies get.