Politics - like Wall Street - is doing business as usual.
For over ten years now, our country has been faced with one crisis after another. From Desert Storm to Fraud on Wall Street. What is interesting is that our political system acted quickly each time - in the name of democracy and freedom for Americans - to ram through decisions that have cost us precious lives and dollars.that have devastated many more lives.. In other words, political ambitions and actions seem to far outweigh the will of the people and the good of the people. Each action seems to take away a little more freedom and a lot more wealth from the very people it is meant to protect and serve. Politicians are meant to represent us not rule over us and most certainly not conspire against us.
Politics and politicians were a large part of creating the economic crisis we are experiencing today. It was during Bill Clinton's administration that government urged banks and Wall Street to take action to allow more home ownership which in turn would expand the economy. They did, the economy began to grow and the flood gates were open.
As more political pressure was put on banks to lend more, new and creative mortgage programs began to be developed which - as we know today - created the insatiable greed that overtook Wall Street. I refer you back to a statement made by then President George W. Bush. (You can view the video and article I authored on July 24, 2008, titled The Truth About Wall Street)
“There’s no question about it,” President Bush said. “Wall Street got drunk (that’s one of the reasons I asked you to turn off the TV cameras) it got drunk and now it’s got a hangover,” Bush said last Friday, according to a video obtained by Houston’s ABC network affiliate, KTRK. “The question is how long will it [sic: take to] sober up?”
Yes, Wall Street did get drunk and the hangover cost millions of Americans their homes, jobs, savings and retirement. But the real question was then and still is today, where are the regulators? And if the President knew they were drunk with greed then why didn't he launch investigations then? The market had already crashed, the crisis was in a full blown recession and evidence of wrong doing was every where. You do have to wonder even if you are not into conspiracy theories.
There is no question in my mind that political intervention prevented any type of regulatory control or investigation. How else can a President say our banking industry was basically Driving Under the Influence (DUI) and not try to stop them, ticket them and bring them to trial?
Now, finally, the moment I along with millions of others have been waiting for. A COP finally stopping a Wall Streeter and gave them a citation. This action by itself is not as important as is the fact that it could and should lead to many more investigations of fraud and wrong doing.
But instead of Washington talking about sending out the DUI squad, the talk seems to be about retraining and re educating the COPS we already have and maybe even adding some new ones (Financial Reform?).
Excuse me if I seem a little confused here, but don't we already have a police system in place to oversee and regulate our banks? Are not the SEC, FTC, FDIC, The Senate and House Committees on Banking, The Federal Reserve the FBI and the U.S. Attorney General already in place to oversee, regulate and take action ? Had they done their jobs in the first place maybe we would not be in as much trouble as we are in now. Where were they? Who handcuffed them? Inquiring minds want to know.
In the words of President Ronald Reagan, "Here we go again". A crisis for the American people turned into partisan opportunities for the "ruling classes" to clash with one another for authority and power at the expense, once again of the American people. The masses don't matter when the ruling classes clash.
Making a big push to rein in Wall Street, the White House announced yesterday that President Obama will travel into the belly of the beast on Thursday to make a case for financial-reform legislation --from The New York Post - O To Hit Street Runnin.Yes, Obama is using the SEC charge against Goldman Sachs to push for his agenda which the Republicans are opposing. I've got news for both the Republicans and the Democrats. We don't need more legislation we need enforcement of the legislation and laws we already have. This is not a political battle nor one either side should claim a victory in. This is no more then seeking out truth and justice.
What both parties should be talking about is how many special investigators we should hire to investigate Wall Street and expose all the fraud and participants. In addition, we should have special investigators investigating those in government who "turned a blind eye" and those who "ordered" turning a blind eye regardless of who they are. The implications of cleaning house in this manner could be greater then Watergate or the Iran/Contra Affair. It is time to come clean not to cover up. Fear no longer works against us as we are growing smarter and stronger as a people.
Both parties should be asking why accounting methods used were allowed or "not noticed". use of "off balance sheet" items seems fraudulent. Off balance sheet accounting defies basic accounting principals. The use of "creative" accounting is fraud and those regulators who allow it or turn a blind eye to it are guilty of conspiracy to commit fraud. Having allowed these actions over the years should be looked at as organized crime under RICO.
This is not a political battle with political opportunities. This is a battle for truth and the pursuit of justice. Justice belongs to no political party. I say give up the politics. To both parties I say holster the guns you are pointing at each other and walk together as a unified force of justice protecting those you have sworn to defend...the American people. The winners here need to be the American people not any specific party candidate running for office or party running for control.
No, we don't need Financial Reform and more political battles across the great divide called "the aisle", we just need our current laws to be enforced and the American people served up the JUSTICE they are entitled to.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
ReplyDeleteAll Roads Lead to Rome
http://tinyurl.com/y79h3o2
Alan Grayson Discloses That Dodd Bill Covertly Eliminates Already Passed Legislation Requiring Full Fed Audit
ReplyDeleteOnce again we get confirmation that Chris Dodd is nothing but a paid manservant for his Federal Reserve masters, in addition to being a lame duck, whose last days in office are meant to do everything to allow the old-school Wall Street ways of endless secrecy and Fed bailouts to continue in perpetuity.
http://tinyurl.com/2729gvt
April 23, 2010
ReplyDeleteAs President Obama makes the case for strong financial reform, Bill Moyers sits down with veteran regulator William K. Black, who says Wall Street is already been breaking current rules.
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/04232010/watch.html
In another impassioned interview Gerald breaks down the history of Goldman Sachs involvement in the US government, discusses countries going broke, banks becoming gamblers, a warning the US is headed to a massive global war, how to prevent this war and have a renaissance in the US and what stands in the way of this renaissance and much more.
ReplyDeletehttp://tinyurl.com/29y76at
Wee need accountability...
ReplyDeleteMonday, May 3, 2010
Turning the Tide on Lawcap and Fincap
http://inpoints.blogspot.com/2010/05/turning-tide-on-lawcap-and-fincap.html
What a plan...
ReplyDeleteHOUSING: Homeowner left with big bill, trashed credit, after rejection for federal loan modification
Feds allow banks to levy interest, fees upon rejection of loan modification
http://www.nctimes.com/business/article_a8528fad-c617-5f84-ab29-6b96b7de9562.html?source=patrick.net
Goldman Sachs dilemma
ReplyDeleteDear T.P.: Goldman Sachs (GS -- $146) will sell anything to anybody, anywhere, anytime. If someone designs a better Port-O-John, Goldman will package it as a private offering, perfume it, tell buyers that removal of the waste product is booked as a loss and therefore treated as a tax deduction. I knew Gus Levy when he was chairman of Goldman until he passed in 1976. And if Gus were alive today, he'd turn over in his grave if he had any inkling of what Goldman was doing.
But not to worry. The SEC investigation is just a speed bump as Goldman and other Wall Street Banks collude to establish their New World Order. Your 77 shares of Goldman Sachs are as safe as if they were insured by St. Pete himself. If you have any doubt, just ask Warren Buffett, who now owns $8 billion in Goldman stock.
http://tinyurl.com/27jqt2j
Companies Dodge $60 Billion in Taxes Even Tea Party Condemns
ReplyDeleteWhile it remains offshore and shielded from federal income taxes, most of the $1 trillion in foreign profits for U.S. multinationals cannot be used in the U.S. That doesn’t make Tyler Hurst very happy about his Lexapro transaction.
“If I’m purchasing it from Walgreens two blocks away, that money isn’t going to anything local, or anything national,” he said. “I’m giving my money to Ireland.”
http://tinyurl.com/2c6y928
Federal Loan Modification Program Continues to Struggle
ReplyDeleteThe April data from the Making Home Affordable Program (HAMP) suggest that the initiative is struggling to materially impact the large and growing pool of distressed housing loans. After initiating about 150,000 trial modifications in September of last year, the rate of new trials has slowed to about 47,000 in April, the lowest level since the program was created.
This slowing growth in the number of new trial modifications suggests that loan servicers are running out of borrowers who qualify for the program, even as the number of adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) resets continues to rise.
If modification programs are unable to stem the tide of foreclosures that will inevitably result as this next wave of ARM resets impacts the housing market, there will likely be another leg down in home values to new long-term lows. We will continue to monitor these data trends carefully.
Vote them all out....
ReplyDelete"We're An Oligarchy And It's Getting Worse"
http://tinyurl.com/29yepmv
a new song by Tim Miller on the mortgage crisis: "Love, Your Broken Home"
ReplyDeletehttp://www.calculatedriskblog.com/2010/05/love-your-broken-home.html
What kind of advisors does Obama have?..Maybe he should call this guy for the true picture...
ReplyDeleteMark covers foreclosures, different failed government programs, the massive percentage of people who fall back into foreclosure after workouts, the length of the bear market in real estate, expected price declines and much more.
http://tinyurl.com/2eubsjx
We need BIG CHANGE!
ReplyDelete25 Questions To Ask Anyone Who Is Delusional Enough To Believe That This Economic Recovery Is Real
http://tinyurl.com/2cl58tr
Are We Going The Way Of The Roman Republic?
ReplyDeleteWith rampant corruption and elitism, America could be following the path of the Roman Republic.
“But, as statesmen, even these better aristocrats were not much less remiss and shortsighted than the average senators of the time. In presence of an outward foe the more eminent among them, doubtless, proved themselves useful and brave; but no one of them evinced the desire or the skill to solve the problems of politics proper, and to guide the vessel of the state through the stormy sea of intrigues and factions as a true pilot. Their political wisdom was limited to a sincere belief in the oligarchy as the sole means of salvation, and to a cordial hatred and courageous execration of demagogism as well as of every individual authority which sought to emancipate itself. Their petty ambition was contented with little.”
– Theodor Mommsen, History of Rome — the quote describes the political class of the Roman Republic’s last decades.
http://tinyurl.com/32xrk22
Double Digit Health Insurance Hikes Crush Small Businesses
ReplyDeleteSmall businesses across the country are getting hammered by rising medical insurance costs. Blue Shield of California is jacking up rates as much as 76%.
Is this what president Obama meant when he said "Change You Can Believe In"?
http://tinyurl.com/34g56pt
Anger at the root of mortgage default problem, study finds
ReplyDeleteIn fact, he said, their decisions to pull the plug “may not turn out to be economically rational.” But they walk anyway, in large part because they are at the end of their emotional rope. They have transitioned from feelings of anxiety and hopelessness to outright anger at their lenders, the government and a financial system they consider unfair.
White published his latest paper in Arizona Legal Studies, the university law school’s journal. After a study he did last year, which argued that far larger numbers of underwater borrowers should stick it to their lenders, White says he was inundated with e-mails and calls from homeowners saddled with negative equity. Many provided him with extensive details of their financial situations and difficulties dealing with their lenders.
According to CoreLogic, a real estate analytics firm, negative equity continues to be a massive and corrosive problem. During the first quarter, 11.2 million homeowners across the country owed more on their mortgages than the market value of their properties.
http://foreclosuredefenselaw.blogspot.com/2010/05/bank-take-this-underwater-house-and.html
Friday, June 4, 2010
ReplyDeleteCensored - NASA , FAA, and Press Censorship of the Gulf Leak, Financial ...
http://inpoints.blogspot.com/
Is HAMP just another sham??
ReplyDeleteAurora Loan Services Saga
Read the comments...no one is getting anywhere with Aurora
http://tinyurl.com/2a38vlp
We hope that now that SAM's response has received far more public scrutiny, the SEC will no longer hide behind the "we didn't see it, so it doesn't exist excuse" - the invesros of America are disgusted with how the SEC has allowed what was once an efficient market to degenrate into a manipulated, broken and inefficient casino, which only generates benefits for a select few, and in which "trading has now become an end in and of itself" but is only profitable for those who, through kickbacks, are part of the "captured" regulatory club that knows the SEC will never touch them for endless market frontrunning and manipulation.
ReplyDeletehttp://tinyurl.com/2ajshae
Feeding frenzy of money...
ReplyDeletewhere's the change.....?
both sides....
Alex Gibney talked about the recently released documentary film he wrote and directed, Casino Jack and the United States of Money. It tells the story of Jack Abramoff, who since November 2006, had been in prison after pleading guilty to three felonies with regard to his lobbying efforts for several Indian tribes. He also pleaded guilty to conspiring to bribe a member of Congress. Mr. Abramoff was released from prison June 8, 2010.
http://tinyurl.com/28jhb47
MAKE THIS STORY GO VIRAL -- You Thought California State Pensions Were Out Of Control? Wait Until You See This List From Illinois »
ReplyDeletehttp://tinyurl.com/258gxz3
Manhattan’s Welfare Kings: How Billionaires Turned Farms Into Personal Tax Havens and Petty Cash Machines, Allowing Them to Give Less, While Taking More
ReplyDeleteWall Street bankers and retired hedge fund billionaires have been talking about fiscal responsibility and deficit reduction, preparing the masses for austerity measures and cuts in social services—which we are told are regrettable, of course, but necessary nonetheless. Well, here is the perfect welfare program for the bailout queens to show off their fiscally conservative chops: Let’s see them cut federal farm subsidies, which funnel billions of dollars to the richest Americans, including notables like Ted Turner, David Letterman, Scottie Pippen, Paris Hilton’s grandpa, Charles Schwab, Microsoft billionaire Paul Allen and just about every single one of Sam Walton’s degenerate heirs.
Most people know next to nothing about this $20 billion-a-year welfare for the rich program, probably because the billionaires want it that way. Why get the masses worked up? Best to let them think the $200 billion they spent from 1995 through 2006 went to friendly farmers with cute farmhouses, rather than to Chevron or Kenneth Lay. Better to let urban entrepreneurs call themselves backyard farmers and toil away for the locavore movement, than to realize that their rich neighbors are reaping actual “farm” subsidies.
Now, farm subsidies weren’t always this criminal and, until fairly recently, had been doing what New Deal programs were designed to do: help the little guy. But the freemarket “reforms” of the Reagan-Clinton Era warped the welfare, redirecting farm subsidies from the have-nots to the have-mores, bankrupting all but the biggest farmers and depositing farm subsides into the bank accounts of the rich.
There’s no need to go to Iowa to see this welfare-for-the-rich in action. You can see it on the Upper East Side, where billionaire elites collect huge welfare checks from the government just for being rich, while a few blocks away, in one of the poorest, most ghettoized districts in the United States, the city’s black population is being purged from food stamp rolls for smoking some dope. Because, as Mayor Rudy Giuliani once wisely said, “As soon as they stop being dependent on the government, they’re moving in a much healthier direction.”
http://tinyurl.com/2eaem2k
Maybe we need to curtail the gaming of the system in every state?
ReplyDeleteHe won't work for the Milwaukee Police Department.
That's because the former homicide detective has been declared "permanently and totally incapacitated for duty."
As an injured ex-cop, Orlowski has been paid nearly $500,000 in tax-free pension checks by the city since 1999. He is currently receiving $53,063 a year from the city Employees' Retirement System, plus full health benefits.
One member of the city Pension Board, which administers payments to disabled cops and firefighters, said it is unbelievable that someone able to perform so often in such grueling races is considered too seriously injured to work for the city.
"Obviously, as a taxpayer, I'm angry and frustrated," Ald. Michael Murphy said.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2538718/posts
And Fannie Mae, an arm of the federal government and a big part of the Obama administration's housing policy, wants to make sure that if struggling families walk away, they suffer for it.
ReplyDeleteHomeowners who strategically default or did not work "in good faith" to avert foreclosure through other means will be ineligible for new Fannie Mae-backed mortgages for seven years. The firm said it will also pursue homeowners in court, seeking so-called "deficiency judgments" to recoup outstanding debt by seizing borrowers' other assets. Thirty-nine states do not limit the ability of lenders to recover what they're owed.
Fannie Mae said that next month the firm "will be instructing its servicers to monitor delinquent loans facing foreclosure and put forth recommendations for cases that warrant the pursuit of deficiency judgments."
"I can't help but notice that every group now frantically calling for tough penalties for homeowners who walk away was virulently opposed to judicial modification of mortgages in bankruptcy," Rep. Brad Miller, a North Carolina Democrat, told the Huffington Post.
Bank of America and Citigroup, the nation's largest and third-largest banks by assets, respectively, support changing existing law to give federal judges the power to modify mortgages in bankruptcy, otherwise known as "cramdown." Proponents argue that if homeowners were able to modify their mortgages in bankruptcy, the number of strategic defaults would substantially decrease, if not nosedive.
http://tinyurl.com/2ao5sfw
http://jsmineset.com/2010/07/05/in-the-news-today-590/
ReplyDeleteIn the process of securitization your mortgage changes owners. In some cases this happens many times. The paperwork in many cases has been lost, is incomplete or simply impossible to sort out.
If you do not believe this contact your servicer and try to hunt down who now owns your mortgage. You will be stonewalled almost from your first inquiry.
You will note here that servicers in some cases are getting huge money. For what? I ask. They are supposed to be simple middlemen between your payment and funds transfer to the lender, therein being paid for the service, hence the term servicer.
If you pay the servicer, but the present owner of the mortgage does not get the funds, you will be sued for payment. You will have to sue the servicer to get your funds back. If servicers had to be bailed out that means they were not operating as a fiduciary, but as a speculator of some sort. You can therefore be royally screwed.
For your sake please go to this site because if the real lender does not get paid you should be asking what happened to your money?
http://bailout.propublica.org/list/simple
Obama keeps bending over for special interests but its the people that keep getting it up their keesta...
ReplyDeleteMedicare Fraud Effort Gives Elderly Surprise Hospital Bills
“A hotshot doctor came down armed with a social worker and Larry’s doctor, and said, ‘Gee, I’m sorry, your husband’s never been admitted,’” Lee Barrows, 75, said in a telephone interview. “I said, ‘Who the hell have I been visiting?’”
Elderly patients caught between U.S. hospitals and Medicare auditors pushing to cut costs are increasingly facing tens of thousands of dollars in unexpected medical bills like the Barrowses, patient advocates say.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-12/hospital-fraud-audits-spur-unintended-cash-penalty-to-elderly-on-medicare.html