Wall Street, Main Street and Economic Crisis
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Wall Street's received a lot of the blame for the financial crisis, but taking advantage good deals is an American tradition. We look at Main Street's contribution to the nation's economic troubles. Also, the challenges President-elect Obama has inherited, and the decline and fall of the social empress of New York Society.
Making News
Obama's 'Inheritance' ()
In three weeks, President-elect Barack Obama will be the world’s most powerful public official, faced with rising threats from all over the world. David Sanger, chief Washington correspondent for the New York Times, has a timely book out, The Inheritance: The World Obama Confronts and the Challenges to American Power.
Guests:
- David Sanger: Washington Correspondent, New York Times
Main Topic
Wall Street, Main Street and Economic Crisis ()
The finger of blame for the worst economic mess since the Great Depression has been pointed mainly at Wall Street, but what about Main Street, where ordinary Americans were living on credit cards and subprime mortgages, borrowed money might never pay back? The Christmas season was as dismal as had been expected? On this archived discussion of To the Point, it's worth asking, as we did in October, about economic recovery. Does China's high savings rate and few credit cards offer a better model? Will the crisis change America's values?
Guests:
- Linda Chavez: President, Center for Equal Opportunity
- Dean Calbreath: Business reporter and Columnist, San Diego Union-Tribune
- Brian Wesbury: Chief Economist, First Trust Advisors
- Lisa Chow: Economics Reporter, WNYC radio
- John Willman: UK Business Editor, Financial Times
Links:
- Willman's column on how society might change its behavior after the credit crisis
- Calbreath's column on the difficulty of living within one's means
- Wesbury's (video) commentary on the Fed's next move
- Chow's Marketplace report on the Chinese aversion to credit cards
- Chavez's (Dallas Morning News) column on personal debt fueling the economic crisis
Reporter's Notebook
Mrs Astor Regrets ()
Brooke Astor was Queen of the New York's high society almost until she died at the age of 105, but her last years read like a soap opera. Her only son, Anthony Marshall, who's 84, is heading to court on charges of grand larceny, conspiracy, forgery and possession of stolen property, all stemming from the way he handled his mother's affairs. Writer Meryl Gordon "infiltrated" New York society to produce Mrs. Astor Regrets: The Hidden Betrayals of a Family beyond Reproach.
Guests:
- Meryl Gordon: author, 'Mrs. Astor Regrets'
CD copies of To the Point are available by calling 1.888.600.5279.
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