More Bad News

For two days I haven't wanted to write.  I've been trying to stay away from politics, and since my last post was politically related and there weren't any light subjects on my mind, I decided to skip a daily post.  This evening, I'm going to step back into politics, with an update of some of Tuesday's post.

A friend emailed me a column that adds to the discussion about the Fed's action and relates it to the Eliot Spitzer mess.    Quoting from the article:

Who are they kidding? Spitzer’s lynching and the bankers’ enriching are intimately tied.

How?  Follow the money.

<snip>

Since the Bush regime came to power, a new species of loan became the norm, the ‘sub-prime’ mortgage and its variants including loans with teeny “introductory” interest rates. From out of nowhere, a company called ‘Countrywide’ became America’s top mortgage lender, accounting for one in five home loans, a large chunk of these ‘sub-prime.’

Read the entire article.  It's worth your time.  Really.  It's especially interesting when the links between Spitzer's investigation of the banks and the timing of the discovery and publication of his "mess" are outlined.

After reading that, I read an article from the Wall Street Journal that says the nation may already be in a recession, one that could be severe. (When I say from, I hope it is clear that I didn't read it on the WSJ site.  The article linked below was, however, on their site.)  Coupled with today's news about another financial bank, Bear Stearns, that's having severe problems and looking for the Fed for bailout.  It's beginning to look grim for the average household, but the banks will be saved with money from these same households.

And finally, I read about our FBI improperly using Security Letters to obtain information about US citizens.  This was the crowning blow.  Not only has our government allowed banks to operate without consideration of law and provided taxpayer dollars to bail them out, our government has lied to us and spied on us.

It is, I hope, understandable why I don't write about politics very much any more.  It is too damned depressing.  Today I was a couch potato watching ACC Tournament basketball.  That's much more interesting.

Comments

[Mac]

In conclusion, Jim, you say, "It is, I hope, understandable why I don't write about politics very much any more. It is too damned depressing. Today I was a couch potato watching ACC Tournament basketball. That's much more interesting."

I'm sorry, but I can't agree. Depressing? Yes. very. But, if those who have the intelligendce to write about politics after being depressed don't do so, how will we ever evolve a less depressing system?

This morning, Obama who for many seemed to be the savior of our system, will give a speech designed to explain how his pastor of twenty years who he admitted to admiring greatly, could have held the anti-US views he voiced in the sermons which have been all over the TV screen recently. One quality we are permitted to require in our Presidents is good judgment. I rather think Obama will have a difficult time convincing us that he has a sufficient amount of good judtgment, but I'll listen to his speech before making up my mind in that regard.

Mac