[danenania]

What on earth are you talking about? Where did I or the article claim anything about amounts lent at any given time? A total of ~$16 trillion was secretly lent to failing financial institutions at extremely low rates over 3 years. That's just a fact and it's an enormous sum that dwarfs programs like TARP regardless of how the transactions were divided. If it provokes populist rage, maybe that's because it should.

[Locke1689]

If it provokes populist rage, maybe that's because it should.

I will no longer argue this with you as it is clear you are not interested in logic. I am not interested in clouding a debate with emotion so I'm done.

[danenania]

Sometimes emotion can be a logical response to events. If you feel disgust at the actions of a murderer or thief, there is nothing logically 'cloudy' about that--it's a justified reaction. You allege that simply stating a numerical figure that represents the sum of the Fed's loans over a 3 year period is 'designed to provoke populist rage'. My point is that if just printing this number leads to strong emotional responses, it's worth considering if those responses are justified. So you see, I'm not actually bringing my own emotions into the discussion, just countering your assertion that reporting the sum amount of the Fed's activities is somehow 'designed' to create anger. So it seems you're the one getting emotional here and taking your ball and going home. I'm just stating my thoughts. But anyway, c'est la vie... thanks for the discussion.

[gdfsnob]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect