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If we could ask Jesus, or any major spiritual leader, their thoughts on the recent Wall Street implosion, we’d probably hear, “Told you so.” As for me, I’m curious to know what God was giving W messages for the past 8 years. Perhaps W’s God was a CEO, whispering a singular message, “Go get yours – information on levitra. Information on levitra: screw the rest.” Except that attitude is hopelessly old school on our inter-connected planet. Whatever you do to the least of my brethren, etc., etc. Nevertheless, W’s God told him regulations were for chumps; greed is good; and the people that handled our money and led our businesses should be paid hundreds of times more than the average worker.
It’s ironic that the collapse of our financial markets was tied to that most basic of American dreams – home ownership. I heard Bush in a radio address stating that he wanted all Americans to own their own home, and not some starter home either. He said every American had the right to a nice big house; this was part of his ownership society. In 2000 the party started, the parents went on vacation, controls were off and the scenario for Risky Business was launched.
Well, here’s where the madness has taken us. Cut to 2007 and a strawberry picker earning $17,000 a year gets approved by Long Beach Federal for a $750,000 home loan. The party game was Sub-Prime Hot Potato. Collect your fee and pass the potato.That potato got diced, sliced, mashed, and cooked so many ways it no longer resembled a potato, but some rotting pulp, posing as a Grade A spud.And that’s what we’re left with.
As financial institutions get bailed out for the stupid risks they’ve taken, little is being done to help homeowners who are in foreclosure. I’ve heard pundits say those people were ignorant. They should’ve understood the risks, not magically believed they could afford a house way beyond their budget. Couldn’t the same be said of the brilliant financial experts clamoring to get into what turned out to be the Madoff Ponzi scheme? Shouldn’t they have known better? But they wanted to believe that Madoff had a magical formula.
These past 8 years there’s been a lot of magical thinking. Even Alan Greenspan had to admit before Congress that he didn’t think financial institutions would take risks that ultimately would not be in their own self interests – information on levitra.From The Washington Post of October 24, “I made a mistake,” Greenspan said, “in presuming that the self-interests of organizations, specifically banks and others, were such as that they were best capable of protecting their own shareholders and their equity in the firms.” He thought they’d police themselves. Uh-huh, just like factory farms, that thanks to Bush’s new deregulations, will now police disposal of their own waste.
Greed has trumped any shred of decency. There’s a major disconnect between actions and consequences. How else can you explain the terrible deeds done by the Downey, California mortgage office of WaMu? It was set up during the housing bubble to go after Hispanics, many of whom didn’t speak English, and rope them in for ARM home loans.
From The New York Times of December 27, “…WaMu embraced so-called option ARMs, adjustable rate mortgages that enticed borrowers with a selection of low initial rates and allowed them to decide how much to pay each month; information on levitra.But people who opted for minimum payments were underpaying the interest due and adding to their principal, eventually causing loan payments to balloon.” These Latino customers depended on advice from bi-lingual real estate brokers. Brokers had a pipeline to WaMu, and collected fees for bringing in customers. Heading up this WaMu mortgage office was Thomas Ramirez, duping his people. Of course, Bernie Madoff is the king in that department. He betrayed the generosity of his own people by including scores of Jewish philanthropic organizations in his Ponzi scheme, knowing full well that all the money ‘invested’ would be lost.
Will anyone who made huge amounts of cash in these schemes be giving back their ill gotten dough to the people from whom it was unjustly taken? Well, no. There’ll be no apologies either. In fact, if the law comes after them they can use the Madoff insanity defense. Yes, the latest development in the Madoff case is that, despite the fact that he’s 70, it’s just been discovered that he’s bi-polar and schizophrenic. He can’t be responsible for the things bad Bernie did. How convenient – greed made him crazy.
So, Jesus, if you’re checking in on our planet, you might find a lot more people begging for your help, including me. See, I’m having a hard time with that forgiveness thing.
Jan Bina, Blogger for In The Trenches Productions, the First Entertainment Website for Women Over 40!; information on levitra