"Stick it to the man who's getting stuck to by The Man"

Fafnir and Giblets have an essential and timely and handy-dandy guide to the "Reform Movement" going on in our government today.

America's a big country with big ideas. Why would we want a little deficit? Make it as big as you can! If you make it big enough, it will catalyze Budgageddon an Budget Jesus will come back. Note: this is not official budget policy yet.

But, you say, Fafnir and Giblets are characters of satire and exaggeration, not thoughtful, expert sources of information, like Morgan Stanley's chief economist.

Roach sees a 30 percent chance of a slump soon and a 60 percent chance that ``we'll muddle through for a while and delay the eventual armageddon.''

The chance we'll get through OK: one in 10. Maybe.

Oh.

Well, maybe Armaggedon's a little strong. How about "A Perfect Storm?"

In a nutshell, Roach's argument is that America's record trade deficit means the dollar will keep falling. To keep foreigners buying T-bills and prevent a resulting rise in inflation, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan will be forced to raise interest rates further and faster than he wants.

The result: U.S. consumers, who are in debt up to their eyeballs, will get pounded.

And if you're holding any banking stocks, you may want to think about dumping them, since the only two scenarios -- higher interest rates or higher inflation -- are not going to be good for long-term lenders at fixed interest rates.

Which explains Greenspan's bizarre suggestion, made a few months back, that people should take out adjustable rate mortgages as opposed to a fixed rate. At a time when interest rates were at historic lows.

If you followed Mr. Andrea Mitchell's sage advice, well then, on behalf of your lending institution I say, "God bless you." And I've got the number for your local Food Bank when the time comes.