I read a blog of a local entertainer from here in Portland tonight (Storm Large) if any of you watched Rockstar Supernova, she was on that. Anywho here is what she thought and I couldn't agree more:

  Sh-mortgage-bord!


Michael Moore's two cents on the financial crisis:

"NOTHING in this "bailout" package will lower the price of the gas you have to put in your car to get to work. NOTHING in this bill will protect you from losing your home. NOTHING in this bill will give you health insurance.

Health insurance? Mike, why are you bringing this up? What's this got to do with the Wall Street collapse?

It has everything to do with it. This so-called "collapse" was triggered by the massive defaulting and foreclosures going on with people's home mortgages. Do you know why so many Americans are losing their homes? To hear the Republicans describe it, it's because too many working class idiots were given mortgages that they really couldn't afford. Here's the truth: The number one cause of people declaring bankruptcy is because of medical bills. Let me state this simply: If we had had universal health coverage, this mortgage "crisis" may never have happened."

My two-and-a-half cents:

He's absolutely right about the healthcare issue. However, the reason for the banks shutting down is their fangs - though hollow tipped and adept at sucking - cannot get blood from turnips...try as they might.

Meaning normal folks (like myself) were offered a chance to own our own home at outrageously low (or no) down payment with introductory rates that made mortgages seem totally doable. We, as home buyers, aren't necessarily idiots, but it seems we did let life get in the way of our attention to detail.

That was our fault. 3 and 5 year ARMs expire, and suddenly your $900.00 "Dude it's cheaper than my last apartment!" mortgage for your three bedroom house goes up to what it is supposed to be ($1200-$1400 a month). We cannot cry "foul" because we KNEW our low low "what a screamin' deal!" mortgage was to last only three to five years. Buying a house is a complicated process. TONS of paperwork ... and if you do something that huge and not know exactly what you're in for and you don't know the difference between "fixed" and "variable", then shame on you.

Before the mess hit the news nearly a year ago about the mortgage crisis, people were getting ready to lose their homes. They KNEW their mortgages were going to go up and when. The lenders didn't randomly change their fees on us, it's in our paperwork. But here's where the banks can stop blaming us and f%$king off with their fanged selves.

When it was a nationwide situation that a vast majority of recently purchased homes were being foreclosed upon, the lenders and banks, who have shitloads of ... what's that thing called? Oh yeah ... INSURANCE ... could've put a freeze on interest rates and worked WITH the panicking families instead of being all hardcore about getting them out of their houses so they could sell them to someone else.

Someone else being...? All those amazing deal loans were now dried up and lenders required a 10-20% down payment in order to feel comfy about giving a loan to anyone. Even though the mortgage situation had stalled, real estate prices - in much of the country - prices even went down. The folks who have $20-$40,000 in liquid assets looking for a new house weren't super plentiful.

So the banks foreclosed like they were trying to win a contest. The average cost of foreclosure per house? $250,000.00 (based on median prices). That's what the banks paid to buy them back when no one else could, and this happened over and over again. The banks spending assloads of money buying back these friggin houses until... "Hey, this is SUPER expensive...we can't really afford anymore...ummmm, can someone help a brother out?"

So here we are - homeowners and renters alike - giving more money to those fucks. And unlike the squinty eyed evildoer in the old time-y films who ties the blonde to the railroad tracks, they'll get away with it. The smiling Mountie on his horse isn't going to ride in to save Nell. Nope, Nell's blond little brains will be mashed out by a big greedy train while the Mountie and the evildoer are 69'ing in a huge pile of bloody and brain-soaked cash.

I have no idea what the whole financial crisis is about (after all, I'm just a trampy entertainer, really), but I do know a bit about real estate. I also know that we Americans really like to have stuff. Especially if it's expensive. And for some reason, we spend like crazy and cry when the bill comes. Well, get some kleenex 'cause here comes the waiter.

At least Chevron is still in the black. They work so hard, those kids.

-Storm Large

Here is a link to her website: http://www.stormlarge.com/

Quote from: bikejunkie223 on October 03, 2008, 12:06:39 AM
I also know that we Americans really like to have stuff. Especially if it's expensive. And for some reason, we spend like crazy and cry when the bill comes. Well, get some kleenex 'cause here comes the waiter.

Thar ya go. That's why the banks are crying. I've had several friends that bought whole heartedly into the ARM mess. They bought big houses, refinanced after they -just- squeaked by the first adjustment, or evern worse, just before, and bought big cars with the 'savings' from the refinancing.

Tools. yes, I'll call my friends tools, when they are. My neighbors have 'new' cars, 'new' things, and 'new' debts to match.

All it takes is an injury or some type to spill the monthly bucket of bills into a sea of debt soffocation. They knew this, and now I'M GOING TO HAVE TO PAY FOR THIS BULLSHIT in taxes for the rest of my life.

What changed to make people need so much crap, and financed crap at that ? YOU FINANCED A FREAKING PHONE ?

I'm just a dumb old lathe hand, but I can see a fool hemorrhaging money.

Why can't people just enjoy a bottle of wine, a sunset, bang the wife, smile, and call it a day anymore ?

Because basically, the public sucks. I think George Carlin said it best when he offered up a realistic campaign slogan "The public sucks, F hope!"

and hell were too broke for govt health insurance. they made a mess of this, how much of a mess could they make with that   

uh, this is nonsense...some of what they are saying is somewhat true but in reality it is much more complicated to explain.  but it does have everything to do with greed and unabashed capitalism which works as well as unabashed communism.  as for medical insurance being involved in this i could not agree more.  all you have to do is look north to Canada and see how to do it right.  of course it is not perfect in Canada but it is a darn good plan non the less.  before i hear from my Canadian friends i will post a reminder.  i am a dual citizen, American and Canadian, have served in both armed forces, marines and navy and have had extensive health care under both plans.  so what i know is from experience.  oh and i was in government as an elected member making laws regarding medical benefits to the public.  i was in charge of public safety which gave me the ambulances, paramedics and hazmat people to take care of.  health care was  mike Murphy's, and still is.