An encouraging way to look at the $700 Billion Bailout: with reservations

I'm always one who enjoys hearing a positive spin on the economy, and so I thought I'd share what Peter Justen, the CEO of MyBizHomePage, told me today when we started discussing the current economic situation:

"In many ways you can make the argument that our overall economy is very strong. Think what would happen if some other countries took a $700 billion hit to their economy," said Justen. "There would be tanks in the street. And we're still living our lives and asking friends if they want to go to a movie on Friday."

Yeah, he's right. Heck, the stock market even opened strong today.

His words were encouraging, especially because it's not as though Justen just fell off the proverbial turnip truck. (I really need to look into how that saying came about. Did someone make it up who hates turnip farmers? Was it statistically proven that turnip growers have a lower IQ than someone who grows kumquats?) But, anyway. Justen's immersed in the corporate world. He's a former mortgage banker, and his company's product, MyBizHomePage, is a free online site that automatically translates QuickBooks data into relevant information that entrepreneurs can use. As PCWorld.com said in a 2006 article, the site translates this relevant info into "just enough financial details to give you an overview of the business, without the mind-numbing detail."

Of course, I should have just left Justen's positive economy comment hanging there, but I prodded Justen for a little more information, and he agreed with the consensus that as strong as our economy is, it could derail pretty quickly if Congress doesn't work out a bailout package soon. And in that case, things could be "catastrophic."