Misplaced Rage: Really? We’re Upset that Government’s Trying to Help Regular Folks?
I’m going to climb up onto my soap box here for the space of a couple hundred words. It’s really getting kind of ridiculous out there right now. I think that there is a lot of misplaced rage with regard to efforts being made to forestall foreclosure. So far, $11 trillion has been committed to “economic stimulus.” How much of that is going to help ordinary people? Not that much. When we get a $275 billion foreclosure prevention plan aimed right at regular folks, I don’t get too bent out of shape. Why?
I’d rather bailout my “loser” neighbors than the fat cat CEOs at AIG, Citi and other financial institutions whose decisions were just as stupid.
The sad thing is that more than $150 billion has been spent on AIG. Citi alone has received $301 billion. That’s more than what’s being spent on the foreclosure prevention plan. And the list — of hundreds of billions of dollars — goes on. Sure, we give a little outcry when AIG spends money on junkets and Citi, in spite of all the money coming in, continues forging ahead with the same shenenigans as before. But it’s a small outcry, nothing like the blind, screaming rage that overtakes people when the possibility of helping their neighbors avoid foreclosure is mentioned.
And the new plan isn’t even that bad. There are provisions for those who made good decisions, but find themselves trapped by declining home values. People who made good decisions can get help refinancing to fabulous new rate. Additionally, it’s not a wholesale bailout. There are requirements that a new loan be affordable — and it’s not for those who couldn’t really afford a home mortgage loan in the first place.
Same story with the “cram down” bill in Congress right now. Homeowners won’t be able to go straight to a bankruptcy judge; they have to prove that their lender has been unwilling to work with them in terms of a reasonable loan modification. Also, the option won’t be available to those who couldn’t afford the mortgage in the first place. There’s some real moderation going on here.
Clearly, we as a society have messed up priorities. Some of the people that this foreclosure plan might help will undoubtedly be the folks that Citi laid off by the tens of thousands after receiving taxpayer money. We’re not upset that Citi is getting $300 billion, but we can’t stand that our neighbors might be helped to avoid foreclosure?
March 7th, 2009 at 7:50 pm
[…] It’s been interesting lately. For some reason pundits have decided that the one measure of the job someone is doing happens to be the Dow. Which is kind of silly. Even as a measure of the economy, I’m not sure how much credence we should lend the Dow. After all, it is a reflection about how Wall Street feels. And, quite frankly, I’m wondering if Wall Street is a little upset that instead of focusing mainly on big firms, Obama seems determined to do something for the middle class as well. Sure, he’s still throwing money at the banks. But in smaller amounts, and he’s tossing a few bones to the rest of us as well. […]
March 13th, 2009 at 10:21 am
[…] to spend much on regular folks (a lot has been spent already on banks), it is tempting to decide to provide a stimulus for individuals who are having a hard time. Help them, and they can in turn help the banks. Doing things the other […]
March 16th, 2009 at 2:23 am
[…] It’s been interesting lately. For some reason pundits have decided that the one measure of the job someone is doing happens to be the Dow. Which is kind of silly. Even as a measure of the economy, I’m not sure how much credence we should lend the Dow. After all, it is a reflection about how Wall Street feels. And, quite frankly, I’m wondering if Wall Street is a little upset that instead of focusing mainly on big firms, Obama seems determined to do something for the middle class as well. Sure, he’s still throwing money at the banks. But in smaller amounts, and he’s tossing a few bones to the rest of us as well. […]