I didn't want to say it, but I told you so :-P

While I was sitting in the jury waiting room today, I was going through last week's issue of Newsweek and catching up on my reading. I came across an article by Daniel Gross entitled, "Reigning In Bubbles So They Won't Pop" and I instantly thought of my Panic! at the Banks! post from last fall. In it I mentioned how I thought that there should be some sort of watchdog which would spot and curtail bubbles before they get carried away and take us into dangerous territory. D. Gross says the same thing and suggests the need for "automatic brakes" on these bubbles. From my understanding, this seems very Keynesian in nature. Basically zig when the economy zags. I guess we've all gotten accustomed to going with the flow when the good times are rolling and then dealing with the hangover when the party's over. But maybe if we had some self-control at the party, we wouldn't have to deal with a hangover the next day. Pump the economy when we're down and reign us in when the bulls are stampeding - pun intended. They call me mellow yellow.

Opportunity

S and I were talking today and she mentioned that one of her coworkers is paying $800 a month for their kid's preschool. An outrageous a sum though it may be, I understand why the parents would be willing to spend this amount of money for it. One doesn't really spend $800 on preschool for the education it affords. They spend it because of the opportunities which the school will provide for their child's future. It's always been a dog-eat-dog world out there, but I presume that the notch has been raised for what constitutes providing opportunities for your kid. When I was young, the opportunity my parents provided me was a move to America and a public school education. It was quite the classic immigrant story. However, today is a different day than it was 25 years ago. Colleges are so competitive and so is the job market. Heck, if you don't stand out then your job may even be outsourced. So if someone has the means to do so, then why wouldn't they send their kid to a premier preschool?