“You don’t get the picture, and many don’t, and frankly I pretty much expect that.”
Actually, I do get the picture. In color. And that’s the problem. Thievery is thievery whether it’s done by a member of MS-13 or political or economic leaders.
Your post notes that the reason underlying the “crisis” on Wall Street was that nobody, be they buyer or seller could make a trade at ANY PRICE in real estate securities. And I don’t argue with you. Have you considered, however, that nothing is not much less than a reasonable price for these securities, because that’s a fair estimation of their worth at this point? These are garbage securities that no one wants to own....precisely because they *are* garbage. The fraud runs deep and no prudent investor at this point would touch this stuff with a 10 foot pole unless they purchased it at a deep, deep discount.
The current owners of these garbage securities don’t want to accept the actual value of the securities which is probably pennies on the dollar. They’ve instead decided that it’s far smarter to push for a government bailout that will make them well. Why accept 10 cents on the dollar when the treasury will give you full face price or close to it? Therein lies the “freeze” of capital markets. Sellers who won’t sell at a market price and buyer who won’t pay a premium for junk.
That's one way to see it, but it is wrong. The securities are worth nothing because the markets that are supposed to value them is broken down by the shear weight of them and is in a panic.
The cost is in the tens of trillions, and there are tens of trillions globally depending on that.
The domino's are almost ready to fall, and if they do, you will not be able to stop it at any price or with any bill.
The meager and small 700B is only a pittance compared to the whole financial system, and that is what we will lose, plus the 700B if this fails to work or is too late.(Or more to the point, fails because it is too late!)