The $700 billion bailout package to save the economy of the world’s only superpower is too staggering to comprehend for the ordinary Filipino whose main concern is coping with the rising prices of basic necessities including the shrinking pan de sal.
But whether it’s in the billions of dollars or in the meager Philippine pesos and centavos, the US financial crisis has again reminded us of the folly of a materialistic society and the virtue of living within one’s means.
In an article in the Inquirer, former Economic Planning Secretary Cielito Habito tried to make understandable to non- financial wizards the problem facing the Americans, which has sent shivers all over the world. He said, “Put simply, the plan would permit US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to buy from troubled US financial institutions, using taxpayers’ money, up to $700 billion worth of the so-called ‘toxic mortgages’ or failed subprime loans.