Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

Whatever the woes of General Motors — and they are substantial — it does not follow that the government needed to drive the company into bankruptcy. With at least $50 billion in government supports undergirding the new GM, the Obama administration auto task force deciding GM’s fate could have steered the company away from bankruptcy…

What in the world is the Obama administration thinking? The GM bankruptcy — entirely avoidable — seems designed to hurt every constituency it is supposed to assist. First, as to the avoidability issue: There’s no doubt that chronic mismanagement and the deep recession have left GM in dire straits. But with the government pouring tens…

This month’s G20 meeting ended with one overriding tangible agreement: A commitment by the rich countries to provide more than $1 trillion in assistance (mostly in the form of loans) to developing countries. This money is desperately needed. Although they had nothing to do with mortgage-backed securities or credit default swaps, developing countries are getting…