Well, the House just passed its version of the Wall Street rescue bill on the second try, days after the Senate passed its sweetened bill (Who knew pork was so sweet???). This time the bill passed pretty easily. I just felt my wallet get a little thinner. Ouch.

I guess I’m like a lot of other people: Not really sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing, given the dismal performance of government when it comes to minding the hen house. I can’t help suspect that some sorry SOB is going to get rich(er) off this, and that really irks me.

We shall see.

Our Daily Red is a blog by DelMio’s Grand Poobah of editorial content, Dave Wilson. Dave moonlights as chief cook and bottle washer and captain of the mop brigade. He can be reached at Dave.Wilson@delmio.com. Or you can post a reply to this posting.

In “The Gridlock Economy,” Michael Heller says that having too many owners holding a piece of the economic pie causes the whole system to shut down, hurting everybody involved.

He gives the example of an entity trying to obtain several parcels of property by eminent domain, only to be stymied by one owner who holds out, either out of a desire to keep the property or to extract a higher price. The project never gets completed in some cases, or spends years in court.

The basic thrust of his book is that, in many cases, a monopoly is more efficient than competing mini-monopolies constantly undermining one another and by extension hurting the consumer. A monopoly assures its future health by making sure its consumers remain healthy enough to continue buying its products or services.

To read a more extensive review of “The Gridlock Economy,” CLICK HERE.