Fail out

If we envisioned the Bush administration as one big bumbling mess, we were prepared to fall in love with our new super intelligent replacement.We would not make any more bad decisions. We would certainly never repeat the errors of our predecessors.

Judging by the reaction of Wall Street and the media, Timothy F. Geithner laid an enormous egg yesterday. When President Obama spoke at his press conference on Monday, he deferred questions on the bailout to Geithner, indicating that he did not want to steal Geithner's thunder when he unveiled the plan. As it turns out, I think the President may have heard the rumbling in the distance and was just looking for shelter from an impending storm.

The apparent lack of detail or direction in the plan fostered an immediate negative response in the markets. While we desperately need the underpinnings of confidence to get us out of bed these mornings, the announcement yesterday probably sent more than a few people scurrying under the covers, heads buried.

I hope that this does not mean this crisis is just too big for us to put our arms around. There has to be a way out. If we continue to act like we are just wandering around the maze, hoping we somehow bump into the exit, I fear we may never emerge .

We have been living in darkness for too many months. Geithner seemingly showed us no path to daylight. For that, he has inflicted a little more pain on all of us.