Patriotism and Iconoclasm (by Fayssoux)

There are many who question the direction the U.S. has taken whose patriotism does not seem to be questioned.  Take Bill Gross in his November commentary:

The US and most G-7 countries have been significantly and artificially influenced by asset appreciation for decades.  Stocks and home prices went up – then consumers liquefied and spent the capital gains by borrowing against them or selling outright.  Growth in other words, was influenced by upside by leverage, securitization and the belief that wealth creation was a function of asset appreciation as opposed to the production of goods and services

Or watch this James McMurtry video – the message is similar, just in a different format (note rail images, fitting for today)

Skepticism, a critical perspective and questioning the decisions of “the powers that be” are certainly not inconsistent with patriotism.