Larry Summers, one of Barack Obama’s chief money trolls, made a splash at yesterday’s “fiscal responsibility summit” by falling asleep, publicly, in front of everyone. Maybe he was drunk? Or tired, from pulling so many all-nighters in light of the recent and complete collapse of the world economy? Or: the thermostat was too high, which is always a killer in crowded conference rooms. At any rate, we’ll know who to blame when the Dow plunges another 700 points and the US Treasury goes bankrupt. [Financial Times]
NARCOLEPTICS 10:43 am February 24, 2009
Snoozy Larry Summers Crashes World Markets
Hola wonkerados.
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{ 32 comments }
Maybe he had been listening to a woman trying to do science?
…I’m sorry if our economic Armageddon bores you!
Oy vey. Non-issue. Surprise-surprise: older, overweight guy falls asleep after multiple all-nighters and heavy dose of jet lag.
This ranks up there with “When Jennifer speaks director cuts to reaction shot of Angelina.” Oh the shock. Oh the horror. Oh teh neurotic anxiety.
It’s his girl-allergy. He knew there’d be women there reciting numbery things, and he overdid it on the sudafed.
This fat, sleeping fuck was partly responsible for the mess we’re in. The least he can do is pay attention in class when Professor Barry is metaphorically grabbing Eric Cantor’s nutsack until he causes a nightly emission. It’s becoming obvious that the main problem Summers & Geithner are wrestling with is how not to wipe out the shareholders of the major banks (and AIG.) Good thing they have their priorities straight. Is it too early to give these two the Mussolini treatmeant? I say no.
From the article:
“John McCain, the former presidential candidate, recommended Mr Obama get rid of his planned new presidential helicopter, the cost of which now equals that of Air Force One. Mr Obama said the existing chopper was adequate, but added that he had no experience of personal helicopters.”
Read the above, folks and compare it to this. That’s what life would be like in David Denby’s dystopian, nightmarish, too-horrible-to-contemplate “world without snark.”
Does he sweat while eating?
…they should have dipped his hand in a bucket of warm water.
Hi-thermostat…hmmm…were they playing opera, as well? Had he just completed the first 24 hours of hell week?
Economics is really boring.
[re=250153]AngryBlakGuy[/re]: they should’ve dipped his fat ass in a bucket of warm shit.
Maybe men are genetically indisposed for staying awake on the job?
Larry was just doing his hilarious Clarence Thomas impression.
[re=250136]Norbert[/re]: womenz trying todo Teh Sciences
Look, so he was up all night drinking because his 401K just went in the toilet…he’s just like us! You know, the ones that can afford a 401K…or any savings at all…hard working Americans.
[re=250147]hobospacejungle[/re]: agreed.
Get rid of those two over conflict of interest and hire Stieglits and Roubini.
If the market tanks and the Treasury goes bust it won’t be Summers’ work. It will all be part of Tim “Tora! Tora! Tora!” Geithner’s evil plot to destroy the economy on behalf of his eastern overlords. Didn’t catch the exclusive expose’ on Fox and Friends this morning? Geithner drives an Acura, people!!! His title is Treasury Secretary but obviously he is secretly the Commerce Secretary…of Japan!!!
[re=250171]sati demise[/re]: Dr Doom will save us!
He couldn’t help himself. All those sanctimonious Republicans sucked the oxygen out of the room.
[re=250171]sati demise[/re]: Volcker. He will thunder in with a shoulder full of hobbits and BAHRUMMMM stomp a giant mossy foot all over the market. Evildoers shudder!
This guy had better be a fucking genius, Obama. Because the optics of this pick, aside from requiring a wide angle lens, are pretty horrid.
I think teh Wonketz accidentally used a picture of Larry Flynn with this post.
If it is good enough for Justice Thomas, it is good enough for the chief money troll.
If he were Japanese he would have to resign now. Although if he had to perform a deep bow I’m pretty sure he’d fall over and not be able to get back up.
I know from first-hand experience that this is not remotely uncommon for Mr. Summers. The more important the people in the room, the more likely he is to doze off. And he is a fucking genius, hence he can do all this incredibly ridiculous shit and still be asked to do what he does.
How come there is always a job for assholes like Larry Summers? No matter how much they screw up, they are always put in charge of something. Is this one of God’s Little Jokes?
[re=250153]AngryBlakGuy[/re]: They should have urinated on him, then after he woke up and noticed, told him he did it on himself.
[re=250277]Aurelio[/re]: “Little”?
I believe he was actually contemplating his own epistemological modesty.
[re=250208]Sussemilch[/re]: Volcker is the shit, but Roubini is rather a one trick pony.
Summers is a really weird guy. As president of Harvard he made a habit of calling professors into his office and giving them lectures about their own fields of expertise. His famous episode at the women in science symposium was an extreme form of that. That’s such a strange thing to do that it made me wonder if he didn’t have a brain tumor or something. If he did have a brain tumor that was causing him to behave strangely several years ago and hasn’t undergone any treatment for it since, then it would make sense that he would be having difficulty remaining conscious now.
Did he drool?
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