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Date Posted: 07:21:16 04/08/10 Thu
Author: Shirley
Subject: Re: Campaign finance report quarterly is in.
In reply to: Jeffman 's message, "Re: Campaign finance report quarterly is in." on 04:40:13 04/08/10 Thu

There were varied and plentiful reasons for getting us where we are today. I was astounded yesterday to hear Alan Greenspan defend his support for variable mortgages. Those mortgages introduced prospective home buyers to no-money-down mortgages and put off paying the piper. Goldman Sachs happily doled out money for those mortgages but then turned around and insured them with AIG, knowing AIG didn't have the money.

As for banks (or consumers) giving up on credit cards, I don't see that happening on a large scale. Credit card companies are always going to find a way to increase their profits, just as we saw them raise rates even for good customers. Big Business will spend millions finding loopholes in any new laws and more often than not, they'll do it in advance of the new law taking effect. We saw it with the drug companies who increased the cost of drugs that would be discounted under PSD three months in advance of the law taking effect. Credit companies raised rates in advance to a new law going into effect in Feb. Although a lot of people learned the lessons, I think there will always be a segment of society refusing to give up their plastic.

If insurance companies hadn't been so greedy in raising rates far beyond keeping a healthy bottom line, there wouldn't have been the push for health care reform which both parties agreed had to take place. And whether Wall St., drug companies, insurance companies, banks, CEO salaries and golden parachutes are completely out of whack and they know it but none are willing to give that up, even though in some cases it certainly wasn't earned but rewarded failure.

Lastly, Jeff, I have read and listened to so many economists, the vast majority of whom have said without the measures enacted, it would have been much worse and would have taken years to pull ourselves out. As it is, there are some signs that we're recovering some--the stock market is up, consumer confidence is up 6% over the previous month and unemployment is gradually going down, not fast enough for some folks but it's moving in the right direction.

The important think to remember is that practices tried in the past and failed to solve the problem can't be used again and expect a different outcome.

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