Title subtext: Can a precipitated crisis be used for good?

I was shocked while watching <a herf="http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0807/13/fzgps.01.html">CNN’s GLOBAL PUBLIC SQUARE, hosted by Fareed Zakaria, today.</a> Please read the full text at CNN’s site.

The show’s introduction tantalized me with the Barack Obama interview, then added this:
<blockquote>And later, if <b>they're scared,</b> you should be, too. </blockquote>

After airing the interview with Barack Obama, Fareed led into his next segment with:
<blockquote>ZAKARIA: Oil and food prices are sky-high, world markets are down, and the American economy seems to be slinking into a long slump. <b>Just how scared should we be?</b> </blockquote>

There was give and take between Zakaria and his panel of three with this midway through;
<blockquote>ZAKARIA: So, you're <b>more scared</b> in a way than he is.</blockquote>

One of the guests, <a herf="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Krugman">Paul Krugman</a>, professor of economics and columnist for the NY Times, had this to say at the end,
<blockquote>And we came out of the Great Depression with Social Security. We came out of the Great Depression with the Trade Agreements Program, which paved the way for the global economy of later generations.

We can come out of this crisis, actually, with an enhanced case, enhanced prospects for health care reform, with an enhanced prospect for a rational energy policy, which could also slide into a climate change policy.

I mean, what we really want is, we want the next president to say, "We have all these big problems. Some of them are short term, but they're wrapped into a long term. And here are the things we can do to fix them."

And we come out in 2013 with a much better society, a much better thing -- partly, you know, <b>exploiting the crisis, <I>exploiting</I> the crisis to do the right things.</b></blockquote>

It was at that moment that I thought of Naomi Klien’s book The Shock Doctrine and "disaster capitalism".

Has this all been a set up?  Admittedly I need to take off my tinfoil hat after that thought, but are we moving to the brink of economic collapse, driven by a war machine, purposeful cronyism and systematic dismantling of oversight sucking out our economic strength, just to precipitate a decision?

A decision between Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare, functional public schools, safe food and civil liberties through government that works versus privatization of everything, no regulations, corporate rule.  Seems to me the Republican mantra of big government can’t work is wrong.

I think it is only a broken government that can’t work.

Krugman, according to the linked Wikipedia citation, is progressive so one would presume he is not just aiding the commentary setting things up for a "crisis" move closer to a Fascist state.  On the contrary, his comments regarding functional Trade Agreements and Social Security along with better healthcare and energy policies would indicate otherwise.

I wonder why the repeated <b>"they're scared", "how scared" and "more scared"</b> references by Zakaria?  Who’s writing his material?

Well, thank goodness the segment concluded with,
<blockquote> ZAKARIA: We've had a somewhat gloomy discussion, but on that optimistic note, we're going to have to end.</blockquote>

How we came to be in the sorry state we are in is of critical importance.  What we do now to fix this is more so.

More of the McSame is not going to work.

Barack can. Yes We Can.