THE COLLAPSE

A Photo Essay of the Economic Crash | Sam Martin | January, 2009

New York, NY -
In a sequence of unforgettable events, the United States stock
market and the United States housing market came crashing down
on our heads. Families have faced foreclosures, job losses, and
financial decisions they never thought they would have to make in
their lives. At the same time, in the same universe, day traders,
hedge fund managers, brokers, and bankers looked on in dismay as
things just kept getting worse.

The impact was

immediate as
American’s were
laid off. In Detroit,
auto-makers
contemplated
potentially filing
for bankruptcy. In
just a matter of
weeks, over 150
corporations filed
for bankruptcy,
laying off their
employees,
unable to continue
operations. Just seven days ago, one of the largest banks in the
United States fell, as JP Morgan Chase purchased the assets of
Washington Mutual. American’s have looked to Congress and
Washington in the wake of a collapse unlike anything we’ve seen
since the Great Depression. Some have even wondered if there is
anything that can be done to prevent further calamity.

In spite of the
damning combination
of bank failures,
home foreclosures,
and massive layoffs,
the last act of the
Bush administration
failed due to
Democrats wanting
the new President to
tackle the economic
crisis. The decision
has led many to wonder what they might be proposing. One of the
biggest and most pressing concerns, obviously, is the backdrop of
American’s who are losing their homes, unable to pay their
mortgages. Even if Congress were to act tomorrow, economists have
predicted millions of foreclosure filings, with hundreds of thousands
of American’s on the verge — right now — of losing their homes.

 2,000,000
jobs
losses in
the Q4 of
2008.

159 public
corporations
filed for
bankruptcy.

Major auto-
makers on the
verge of
bankruptcy; they
employ over 1.4
million
American’s.
 THE LIBERAL

Tamara Powell | January, 2009 | Feature Story

“It is undeniable the

spirit of the
The nation has seen its 44th President of the United States
inaugurated. And, oh, what an inauguration it was. The speech started off American dream has
with optimism and a clamoring for a sense of unity, for a sense of corralling been defiled and
behind Senator Murphy and his agenda. Invoking the good-will of compromised.’ -
Abraham Lincoln, the new President drew contrasts to Main Street and Joseph Murphy
Wall Street, painting the latter as corrupt charlatans who scammed the
American people in a careless and reckless venture to pad their own
pockets, in a corrupt scheme that — if you believed the new President — nobody saw coming.
It seemed as though President Murphy worked to focus the polarization toward Wall Street,
rather than himself — but our recent memories don’t fail us.

Joseph Murphy failed to win the popular vote, narrowly squeaking out a win in the election
once news of a financial collapse was on the minds of most American’s. In truth, Mr. Murphy

could make his best attempt to put forth a message that America should corral together and
support whatever it is he wants to put forward, but even with the best silver tongue, it’s hard to
argue the American people would be willing to buy what he’s selling.

As more people lose their jobs and more and more American families lose their homes

and lose their savings — there is no time to breathe. Mr. Murphy is quite literally stepping into
the middle of a major crisis, in which he will be forced to try and lead, despite also stepping
into the White House just as polarizing as the man he’s succeeding. But unlike his predecessor,
President George W. Bush, and his predecessor, President William Clinton, Mr. Murphy is
stepping into unfamiliar territory. This territory being a Congress divided between two parties,
 with Democrats controlling the Senate, and Republicans regaining control of the House of
Representatives. This partisan divide, providing Republicans an essential ‘veto’ of their own,
will be sure to force Joseph Murphy to moderate as President — or that’s at least what
common-sense would tell you. In his speech, the new President-elect spoke of making an
aggressive ‘economic investment plan.’ He spoke of a national infrastructure bank, new
renewable energy programs, and ending
the wars abroad. The liberal vision of the
44th President of the United States is
perhaps what endeared him to
Democratic voters. It is, arguably, what
catapulted him into the White House. It
could also be argued that he will have
little choice but to be retrospective about
that vision and agenda — in light of his
narrow victory, the economic crash, as
well as his party losing the majority in the
House of Representatives.

The wildest dreams of his supporters

have likely been dashed. The hopes of a
radical environmental plan will likely have
to be laid to the wayside, in favor of
immediate measures which can get the
economy moving and shaking again. And
the wide-eyed optimism displayed by the
new President sits in stark contrast to the
bleak view many Americans’ currently hold Joseph Murphy defeated both Barack
about the future of the U.S. economy. The platitudes long Obama and Hillary Clinton to become
accepted in inaugural addresses will have to end there, as the nominee for the Democrats in 2008.
American’s will be expecting action, and expecting it
quickly.

It will be up to Republicans how much

Cindy Anne Vissering, Republican
Senator of Alabama, has been chosen
to lead Republicans in the Senate.
leeway they give the new President in
making judgement calls to try and put
out the current blazing flames of the
economic crisis. It is highly likely that
Republicans would prefer the blueprint
of Mitt Romney to that of Joseph
Murphy. If the new President wishes to
be successful, it would be in his best
interest to forge strong relationships
with Speaker John Boehner (R-OH)
and newly elected Senate Minority
Leader Cindy Anne Vissering (R-AL), as
they will be at the forefront of decision
making on what makes it through
Congress and what doesn’t. While
they, too, will feel pressure — it will be
nothing like the weight that is on the shoulders of the new
President.

Whether or not Mr. Murphy will change Washington, or if Washington will change Mr. Murphy,
remains the burning question. The idea that the next President will be able to wave a magic wand
and solve the economic crisis will be prevalent in the minds of many American’s, looking for
leadership, yet unachievable and unrealistic. Navigating partisan waters while maintaining
ideological purity will be impossible. Maintaining ideological purity and refusing to navigate
partisan waters will be detrimental. A healthy balance seems almost idealistic and unobtainable.

Perhaps the greatest challenge of this generation rests on the shoulders of Mr. Murphy
and the people he surrounds himself with. We are now spectators to what unfolds, effecting all of
our lives, forging our hopes on a government that can do enough to stave off a crisis which puts
our country into serious jeopardy for the next decade. If the liberal policies and promises of the
campaign are the central theme to governing, it’s waging a risk of millions of American’s
livelihoods. And it’s putting at risk millions of American’s homes. The campaign of 2008 will have
to be forgotten — what is important now is the path of 2009. The path to recovering and salvaging
a broken economy that continues to trend downward.

We’re in this together. We have no choice.

 IN RECOVERY, ENERGY IS THE KEY

Simon Jackson | January 2009 | Economy

In the path to economic recovery, energy is going to be one of the keys to

achieving new job creation. Even as the economy spirals, the need for natural
resources and fossil fuels will continue. Domestically, the U.S. has untapped
potential in bringing forth a major growth of new jobs from the energy sector.
Energy is the true lifeblood of the American economy — without it, our crops
aren’t transported. Our homes aren’t powered. And our airplanes don’t get off
the ground.

Tapping the potential of domestic sources of natural gas and oil will reduce
costs for American’s at the pump, for manufacturers, and it will create a
multitude of much needed jobs throughout the heartland. A piece of legislation
was introduced in the Senate by Senator Ari Goodman (R-NE), which would
dramatically expand new leasing, provide states new tools to regulate fracking
on their own, and reduce burdensome regulations which currently prevent the
energy sector from thriving.

The American Energy Independence Act is an answer to the current woes of our
economy. It would boost communities in rural America, it would provide new
opportunities for states to take advantage of their reserves, and it would provide
a jumpstart — when we need one the most — to a sector which will be
extremely important to the economic recovery. In that sense, energy is the key.