Ever since last year, there has been one bailout after another. First it was TARP for banks, then auto industry, then stimulus package, more for auto industry and now mortgage bailout for irresponsible homeowners. It is starting to piss me off. Not only that I am not getting any benefits from these bailouts but, I am paying for them all.
I didn’t get the Bush $600 check last year and won’t get the Obama $1200 check this year, either. I didn’t buy a house that was beyond my means and didn’t borrow too much money against it and unfortunately I have been making my mortgage payments every month. Nobody cares about stupid responsible me.
It seems like the government is only trying to reward bad behavior through these bailouts. People who bought too expensive houses without considering if they could meet the future mortgage obligations, banks that made bad loans to these individuals and financial industry that created bad investments with these bad loans and made a huge mess of it all, are all getting rescued out of their missteps with just a slap on the wrist.
They argue that foreclosures must be stopped because it doesn’t only affect the people who lose their house but, it reduces the value of houses in the neighborhood. Fine by me. I am planning to live in this house and I am not in it for flipping and cashing in profit. If the market value of my house goes down why should it bother me? People who got into houses that they couldn’t afford must pay a price for their stupidity. Bailing them out of a foreclosure is just going to encourage them to make the same mistake again in the future.
The banks that financed the whole housing bubble through predatory lending practices must be allowed fail. Sinking billions of dollars in the banking industry hasn’t helped. They still want more and they don’t even know how much more. Nationalizing these banks and wiping out all the shareholder equity is the best option and the government should do that without trying to sugarcoat it.
Auto companies that fail to keep up with change in marketplace and make bad deals with the unions must be allowed to get into bankruptcy and come out as better structured companies just like the airline industry. Pumping money into them is not going to change anything.
While everyone else is getting bailed out what about disciplined savers who lived within their means and saved money for the future? 30-40% of their savings have been evaporated in the last year or so. Shouldn’t they get a bailout? I think they should. If the government is rewarding citizen and corporations for showing bad behavior, they should not completely ignore the model citizen who didn’t stray from their straight path.
Update: Thanks for reminding me, Siddhi! Yes, I am also paying for that freaky, unemployed, living on food stamps and disability, baby popper in California. She deserves a separate post but, I get so angry about so many different things when I think about her that I can’t find words to write that post.
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admin Money & Investing, US bailout, rant
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