Posted on 09/20/2008 1:28:16 PM PDT by Maelstorm
I’ve learned most of life’s lessons the hard way, always have. I once joined a really cool health spa when I was in college earning $55.00 a week. I soon realized that I couldn’t afford to belong to a really cool health spa and was reminded of it every month for almost two years as I wrote checks I couldn’t afford to write until my obligation to the not-so-understanding owners of the really cool health spa were paid in full. That was stupid, but I learned from it.
I once gave a friend of mine $4000.00 dollars to invest in a “can’t miss” real estate plan. It was can’t miss and so complicated I didn’t even understand how the deal worked. I’ve never seen the $4000.00 or all the profit my friend assured me I’d see. That was stupid, but I learned from it. I’ve not seen that friend much since then.
Now, our elected officials are considering a 3-billion dollar bailout for people who are in danger of having their home mortgages go into foreclosure because it turned out that they couldn’t afford the loans, the monthly payments and certainly couldn’t afford the penalties that came with failing to make their payments. The 3-billion dollar bailout will also fund the banks and lenders who made loans to the people who couldn’t afford them in the first place. The banks and lending companies in many cases knew they were making loans that were at the very least risky. They made bad loans and the people who took out the loans either didn’t know or didn’t believe they’d be unable to pay their mortgages.
I really believe there are folks who have never connected the dots between government bailout and their own wallets. There are folks who believe that the government is this independent entity that has its own money and can pay for things we can’t pay for. The money for this bailout and all government bailouts come from you and me, if you pay taxes. It’s our money; the government doesn’t have any money that they don’t get from us.
I’m not anti-tax, not at all. I’ve paid a lot of taxes for a lot of years and I’m glad to. I’m glad my tax money is spent to build roads and bridges. I’m glad my tax money is spent to feed hungry children who come from poor families or families where parents fail to feed them themselves. I want to pay taxes for our military and our park system and police agencies that actually serve and protect and solve crimes. What I don’t want to do is pay the mortgage for people who buy homes they can’t afford. I’ve lived in several apartments in my time, not because I love thin walls and no yard, but because at the time I couldn’t afford to buy a home. Sure, everyone wants to own their own home, but how about saving some money, make more money until you get to where you can qualify for a legitimate home loan that barring illness or unemployment you can afford. I hesitate to mention personal responsibility because I know how it is generally looked down upon.
Do you know how much money 3-billion dollars is. I don’t, but it looks like this…. $3,000,000,000.00. It’s billion with a B and its money that could be spent more wisely. Spending billions to bail out bad decision making by large lenders and individuals is simply a bad idea. It never dawned on me that the government (taxpayers) would fix my dumb mistakes in the past, and I promise not to come calling when I make my next stupid decision…………. And make it I will.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
No bailout, take down everyone involved, lenders and borrowers!
“Its a lot cheaper than putting the taxpayers on the hook for it.”
Absolutely not!
That would pure theft from those that are financially responsible!
Let them suffer through the pain so they won’t do this kind of thing again.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
“So you want financially responsible Americans to clean up the mess of others?”
Wrong, I want all the borrowers that can’t pay and the lenders that gave them loans without equity or good credit to lose everything they have.
A bailout lets them keep the home and the borrower to remain in business.
Throw the leaches that bought without equity be thrown out in the street.
I kind of like the idea of a lot of bad loans causing the U S and the rest of the worlds financial systems to collapse
~~~Ronald Reagan
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
It’s right and proper to pay off the debts of those fooled into this scam. The American people were fooled when they voted for the leadership who forced financial institutions to mortgage those who’d default. Now Americans are paying for voting for that corruption.
Americans cannot afford to retire now, OR they’ll will have to privatize their social security—retirement that should never have been put into the government’s hands.
Americans will have to be on guard against the euthanisia movement. The demons that convinced the generation that abortion is not only a right but a duty to save the earth are now going to suffer the same “final solution” mentality of the next generation who must suffer the retirement community and all the expenses incured for being old and weak.
This debt will test our hearts and the charity that must issue from it for the nation to survive. The frivolous expedient politics will demand death for the elderly, disabled, mentally challenged, and weak. The champions for human life from conception to natural death will have to work hard to educate voters to make the right decisions.
I personally don’t think bankruptcy should ever be allowed under any circumstances.
Just as when my corp. was losing due to the invasion of illegals being hired by competators instead of declaring bankruptcy and letting creditors eat it, I paid every bill with personal savings until I closed the corp. free and clear ofany obligations.
I feel the same way. The guvmint wants to punish those of us that were responsible and did not treat our homes like ATM’s nor got a sub prime mortgage with no documentation. Or the interest only jumbo loans, I could go on and on.
“Businesses and individuals debts are discharged and they can make a fresh start.”
That’s what is wrong with bankruptcy!
The results, however, are the worst.
In the Soviet Union everyone was equalized. The result: everyone lived in sub-standard collective housing (except the party fat-cats) and it finally became bankrupt.
As for blaming Bush for fixing this mess, I don't. The damage had to be stopped, and stopped immediately. We tried a bit of Communism, and it caused heavy damage. Our tax dollars are picking up the tab.
Should we be angry about it? Absolutely. But not about the fix. The fix had to be done or the damage would have been catastrophic, at least from what I'm hearing and reading about it. If someone thinks we could have weathered allowing the status quo to continue, I'd appreciate an education on the reasons why.
So what do we do? We elect McCain-Palin and set those mavericks loose to reform, but as was pointed out very clearly on Rush's show... you can have all the regulations you want, but poor management is going to mess it up everytime. It always comes down to managment.
Fannie Mae (I think we should starting calling it Frankie Mae, after one of its main proponents: Barney Frank) should be shut down. This house giveaway must stop.
Much better to shut these communist collectives down, lower taxes and create an enviroment where people can thrive and buy their own houses than to attempt importing tired old 1960's Soviet systems into this country. I think that is the lesson learned here, and I hope someone is taking note of it.
Either bail the situation out with our tax dollars or have a total economic melt down which would probably take years to recover from. And probably at some later date involve a government “Great Depression” style intervention, after everything is down the drain.
It's a classic example of pick your poison.
It is infuriating and frustrating.
A September 11, 2003 New York Times article shows that President Bush proposed “the most significant regulatory overhaul in the housing finance industry since the savings and loan crisis a decade ago.” His proposal: An agency within the Treasury Department to supervise mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Fearing that mortgages would no longer be available to people who were unable to pay them back, Democrats eventually killed the proposal. The current meltdown in the mortgage industry is a direct result of giving mortgages to people who could not pay them back, a practice protected by Congressional Democrats...
President Bush is not stuck on stupid.
This nation of ingrates is.
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