The herd gets on board EuroTARP

Based on comments this am from CNBC’s Joe “The Hair” Kernen, former U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson needs to get over to Europe and sheperd a new TARP program. Today’s lead editorial in The Globe & Mail echoed the need for a European version of TARP to ensure the global economy didn’t sink into another economic recession.

Those of you who’ve been watching Kim Parlee and I on BNN TV’s Business Day will recall that we had this very discussion from four and six weeks ago; Mr. Paulson’s name was my candidate to lead the charge too. That was after August 4th’s discussion with BNN’s Andy Bell that it was time to go 20% in cash; in hindsight, I wish I’d gone alot higher.

Of course there’s trouble (see prior post “Time to get [really] worried” Aug 25-11), regardless of the type of asset weighing down a bank balance sheet. Subprime or soverign debt, it matters not.

Sadly, more than a month has gone by, the rest of the business media have come to recognize just how bad things might get, and yet Europe’s political leaders still don’t appear galvanied as a group.

Crossing our fingers that this will change quickly.

MRM