What does it take to get you in the holiday spirit?

 

How about $7.4 trillion ($7,400,000,000,000) in giving? If that won't do it, then I just don't know what will.

 

Oh, wait -- that's right, the person doing the giving is you. Sorry about that. I'm giving too. I feel your pain. On the long-shot chance you haven't heard about how deeply the government has gotten into the bailout business, $7.4 trillion is the answer to the question, "How deeply?"

 

So, you can forget about the $700 billion bailout. It's old news -- mostly old, anyway. The weekend announcement of the $306 billion Citigroup bailout did remind me of a certain comment less than two weeks ago.

 

On November 13, Treasury Secretary Paulson did an interview on NPR's All Things Considered radio broadcast. He was asked about the $700 billion bailout, specifically if he could "tell Americans who are listening something [positive] that should have affected their lives by now?" Here was Paulson's reply:

 

"I believe the banking system has been stabilized. No one is asking themselves anymore is there some major institution that might fail and that we would not be able to do anything about it. So I think that is a positive."

 

Is it unfair to contrast Paulson's words with events that move at a pace he can't control? Perhaps. Then again, I'd be more inclined toward "fairness" if he conducted himself as Secretary of the Treasury, instead of Deus Optimus Maximus of the Federal Piggy Bank.

 

Anyway, back to the $7.4 trillion: people are starting to do the math, and that is the figure Bloomberg News published today. The article spelled out their analysis in arriving at that amount, I don't think it's overstated. Bloomberg has been virtually alone among the major media in objecting to the Treasury's secrecy regarding the bailout, secrecy their article noted as well:

 

"When Congress approved the TARP on Oct. 3, Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson acknowledged the need for transparency and oversight. Now... regulators commit far more money while refusing to disclose loan recipients or reveal the collateral they are taking in return."

 

In case you're wondering how much the Treasury has put you down for in their obligatory spending spree, "the money that’s been pledged is equivalent to $24,000 for every man, woman and child in the country."

 

When will it end? I don't like that question either, so here's a better one: Have you taken control of your financial future? "Yes" begins with having the right information: We can help. Click here to learn more.