I read political blogs and follow the news but don't care to get into the red and the blue on this blog. I'm more purple than red or blue and no one wants to read my very middle-of-the-road opinons. I live in a very blue state and a cobalt blue county. I want the best chances for people but also believe that people have to be responsible and accountable for their actions. I was raised under the "work hard, pay your way" plan. I don't believe that home ownership is a right, I believe you work for it. When you can afford it, THEN you buy the house. I believe in access to affordable health care but don't believe in a socialist medicine. Free health care is not a right guaranteed by the Constitution and you know, someone has to pay for it. I acknowledge that our health care system is broken but a free ride for everyone based on the backs of the middle-class hamsters pisses me off. Because I'm on that hamster wheel and I keep paying more and more for less and less.
It floors me that our government approved a bailout for companies that basically have made such poor business choices that they've run themselves into the ground. With everything we know about markets, we've created a false one and this bailout just pumps additional funds into the fantasy. Believe me, I hear the large sucking sound in the background letting me know that my 401k is tanking but we know that markets adjust. Any basic economics course will tell you that adjustments happen and the more we interfere, the worse we make it. But right or wrong, we have a spending problem. This whole country is like a teenager out of control with a parent's credit card. Guess what folks, Mom and Dad finally got the bill in the mail. We have been living far beyond our means both personally and governmentally. We can't afford many of the programs we have in place but both politicians can't wait to roll out the newest ways to spend our money. Of course, all plans come with some statistician's explanation of how it will actually save us money. This combined with our eternal focus on the material, new plasmas, new shoes, new clothes, new cars. We need it! We want it and we don't care because we have our stocks and 401ks that will save for our retirement. I understand that there were some instances of predatory lending practices but seriously folks, no one forced you to buy more house than you could afford. I'm sick of interviews with people saying they deserve help to stay in their homes and they have new cars in the driveway in the background. Did they ever stop to think that maybe they shouldn't buy that new flat-screen tv because THEY COULDN'T AFFORD IT?
Okay so back to purple and my single political post. I've already mentioned that I was furious about the bailout. I'd consider a plan that was well researched and developed on the principles of transparency and what was best for the public but that's NOT what was proposed and certainly not what passed. The bill was based on fear, secrecy, panic and greed. And they couldn't resist, could they? In this bill passed in "dire financial straits" there is PORK! Children's toy arrows, car racing tracks, fishermen, etc. Golden parachutes all around too because the poor performers are already lounging by the pool with their fruity drink.
Seriously, both McCain and Obama are bright people. I honestly don't think either one of them would have supported the bailout if we weren't looking down the barrel of the election. It's hard to have the "people need to live within their means" discussion now, isn't it? But whomever carries the election in November, PLEASE STOP SPENDING BEYOND WHAT WE CAN AFFORD!
My parting shot...after we spend $85 billion to bailout AIG we get this:
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5973452&page=1
The poor execs at AIG were so stressed out by their week on Capitol Hill that that they had to recover at a luxury resort and spend close to $500,000 for a retreat. I threw up a little in my mouth when I hit the $26,000 in spa charges. Manis and pedis with our bailout. We got ripped off...seriously ripped off.
Shame on them, shame on our Government leaders for forcing this on us without the research, due diligence and discussion it needed, and shame on us for our spending habits and not taking savings seriously.
As a purple hamster, I'm getting really tired on this wheel.
Now back to your regularly scheduled programming.......
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3 comments:
Hi sis. Hello to little James and Alex. You know where I stand (*cough* VOTE OBAMA *cough*) but I agree that the last month has been so crazy in terms of politics and economics. People are really hurting, and I agree that a lot of people got home loans they shouldn't have had in the first place. But as bad as the borrowers might have been, the whole credit-crunch thing came about because it was way too easy to get credit, and lots of banks made money off of "shorting" everything.
Obama isn't my ideal, but I think he's the best option we have right now as Americans. Too many foxes running the financial henhouse, so to speak. I do think he'll appoint/hire smart, dedicated people based on performance rather than loyalty, since this is kind of the reason we're in such a hole right now. IMO, Bush was all about the "yes men." Kind of scary, really.
It's getting cold in Seoul! There are roasted-chestnut guys everywhere now, and I was thinking of you. Remember how we never got to have roasted chestnuts as kids because mom hated them? And so we had to do without? :)
Love your blog. Hope all is well. Let's get skype set up soon!
I do think the credit was waaayyy too easy to get (has been for years) but the lenders were also under pressure to lower their standards and lend to those that couldn't qualify for regular loans (it's the American Dream so we're all entitled, right?). Flawed logic all around but I'm tired of news that makes the consumer sound like a sheep that simply took a handout because it was offered but wasn't smart enough to realize they'd have to pay it back.
I'm not crazy about any of my options for voting. I do think Obama is very smart but the increased spending concerns me. Don't get me wrong, much of McCain scares me too.
If we trace the flaws back, mortgage securities and the practice of bundling them a la Freddie/Fannie is where we end up. I just wish that our bailout came with things that were more applicable to the population rather than to just these companies.
Now, if we weren't supporting a war also we'd be in way better shape too so there is no easy solution but my major point is that as a society, we're addicted to stuff and now we're paying an awful price.
I agree lenders were under pressure, but then again they weren't being Samaritans about this -- they were making _lots of money_ through the "creative" offering of CDS's, or "Credit Default Swaps." It was like a really weird but incredibly profitable form of insurance against people who might not make their payments on time (or ever, for that matter). And they sure as hell weren't doing it out of the goodness of their hearts, but because they made lots of money off of (circa 2006) "safe" hedge investments.
Yes, people took loans they shouldn't have (speaking as someone who happily paid of my last credit card before coming to Korea). But this Republican argument that only scary poor people (i.e.,"Black," let's be honest here) are to blame is a blatant lie.
This is just a little taste of what was really going on:
http://www.investorwords.com/5876/credit_default_swap.html
Again, plenty of blame to go around, but it was hardcore de-regulation types like Bush II and McCain who established the scenario for this to happen, while at the same time telling us invading and occupying Iraq would pay for itself through magical pixie-dust oil revenues.
So yeah, you know where I stand. Obama has never claimed to be a financial genius, but what he does seem to be is someone who's bright and eager to surround himself with knowledgeable, reality-based people.
As for spending, the Fed just gave Wall Street (AIG, Lehman Bros., etc.) hundreds of billions of (our) dollars to stop the bleeding on Wall Street. Any social program Obama wants to put in place would be a drop in the bucket in comparison. And again, Iraq. Taxpayers are paying over billions per month there to prop up a basically anti-American, pro-Iranian government. Because the pro-Iranian Iraqis (the Shia, as opposed to the Sunnis who were Saddam supporters) are the best thing we'll ever possibly get right now.
I get frustrated when people worry about Obama spending more of our collective money when in fact Bush II has been happy to make our Federal government bigger, more wasteful, and more incompetent than ever. It blows my mind that anybody would still consider the Republican party to be the one of "financial responsibility."
Seriously, if you want small government and sane financial discipline, you have to vote Democrat. Bill Clinton, despite his obvious flaws, reformed Welfare and balanced the budget. BALANCED THE BUDGET! It'll be two decades, at least before another POTUS, Republican or Democrat, can do the same thing. (Actually, probably not since that's when heavy-duty Social Security payments will have kicked in, and we'll all be more broke than we are now.)
But I will stop tainting your sight with teh politiczors! Oh, but don't forget the Supreme Court justice appointments coming up either. We are a proud Democracy, not a Theocracy. Well, at least we should be a proud Democracy.
Take care! Call you soon!
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