Some Secondary Consequences of Economic Collapse

International governments across the globe are struggling to curb the effects of the economic meltdown. Officials are looking for help, and everyone is wringing his or her hands. And in some cases, countries are taking decidedly isolationist steps to insulate problems.

One of the more extreme examples of this isolationism is the United Kingdom's treatment of Iceland. With the global credit markets tumbling and stock markets recording the worst losses in their histories, the British government took steps to freeze their assets in Iceland banks by using antiterrorism laws. Iceland, which is by all accounts taking a significant brunt of the economic meltdown, has been set back markedly further by being grouped with terror states.

This drastic step by the British government is just one example of the major moves that governments are taking to avoid serious economic turmoil. In the United States, there is more talk recently of bailing out major manufacturing companies like General Motors and Ford. These companies are vital to Americans' way of life: one in ten Americans is tied in some form to an automotive industry position.

The American government is also limiting its imports from countries that have historically depended on US revenue.

The increasingly controlled positions in the economic market have political implications. The global nature of our economic system encourages trade and capital-sharing; however in times of toughness, the major economic giants can maneuver more easily than the smaller entities, like Iceland. What follows is a political fallout: allied countries become distant and cold.

The G8 and the IMF are already talking about figuring out ways to rescue these major manufacturing countries. However, smaller economies are suffering just as badly. The United State's Wall Street and Main Street dilemma is a microcosm of the global problem--the main streets of the world are footing the bill and suffering the consequences.

Bailouts are structured to ease worrisome economies; yet, they seem to cause trouble in other aspects of society.