Responsible bail out

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-13-2008
Responsible bail out
272
Wed, 11-19-2008 - 9:05pm

I am for the bail out. I've supported the overall idea since it was first proposed. What is distressing is how we are apparently totally bungling the power granted to this administration.


My bad. I should have known they could not even get this right.


On the way home tonight, NPR's Marketplace ran a story on how executives are being paid bonuses, and that companies are paying dividends - out of this funding. Few are doing anything remotely close to lending.


Barney Frank was right to be outraged at the lack of assistance for homeowners, and the continued reluctance of the administration to assist homeowners.


And today comes word of deflation, a huge, huge red flag that screams the 'd' word. Folks, we are on the cusp of 1930, and our leaders, given latitude they did not have in 1930, are f'ing it up.


I am no expert on this, but the way they explained this tonight, deflation can spiral downward, last occuring way back in the 1930s.


There is 450 billion left. How do we use this intelligently? First thing that has to happen is mandate no bonuses and no dividends to any company receiving funds. Mandate they must lend, and we will gurantee mortgages they renegotiate to better terms for the homeowner, allowing them to stay, with a certain acceptable parameters. Set quotas on how many mortgages they must underwrite a day, how many auto loans, etc. Publicise acceptability criteria, so people know before going in whether they qualify.


If there are one too many automakers in Detroit, don't close one, set it to a different task - any ideas out there on how we could divert them to something that helps us face other issues? America has to build things again... what can we get them to build? Financing isn't the problem, the money will be there - any ideas?

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iVillage Member
Registered: 04-02-2008
Wed, 11-19-2008 - 9:45pm

I respect your opinions but since the union said they will give no concessions, I have decided I will give none of my tax money.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2007
Wed, 11-19-2008 - 10:55pm

The UAW always says that they will not make concessions.

Sopal

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iVillage Member
Registered: 04-02-2008
Wed, 11-19-2008 - 11:10pm
I think the union is their
iVillage Member
Registered: 01-28-2004
Wed, 11-19-2008 - 11:19pm

If the union contracts won't change, it will just postpone the problem.


Capital gains taxes could be cut to zero and let private money get things stimulated. High taxes did no good in the 30s.


http://www.cato.org/pubs/tbb/tbb-0303-14.pdf


Nobody will want to invest with the threat of an Obama 30% cap gain tax.


Oh and Detroit could start making bikes, you know those Obama green jobs. Because Obama want skyrocketing electric rates, so in a few years electric cars will be the next hard sell.

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-13-2008
Wed, 11-19-2008 - 11:25pm

Yanno, when I used to surpervise staff, if someone complained they knew one thing had better accompany the complaint.


A potential solution.


Yes, the union contract must change. Hell, my union is talking on helping the state, so if we can do it, they can do it.


Right now capital gains is no issue - capital cannot move, companies cannot take a chance on being caught short on liquidity. Someone has to lend, lend big time, and lend big time fast, or none of it matters. There are bottlenecks everywhere, frozen by inability to get loans to smooth the peaks and valleys of daily commerce, while longer term funding to average people is about gone.


Only one who can really do lending now is the government, and that might well be what happens in the near future. Someone has to do it - if business won't, then the government will - and that is an example of where private markets can catastrophically fail to the point of threatening the economy. I can cite another, I worked through it 25 years ago.

Full length fiction: http://llhaesa.org/ (pronounced la.hay.ess.sa)



Full length fiction: worlds undone

"You have no power over my body..." ~ Anne Hutchinson

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2007
Thu, 11-20-2008 - 12:03am
I think since Bush and Paulson are against a bailout, and Congress is wavering on the matter, that GM will go into bankruptcy.

Sopal

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iVillage Member
Registered: 04-24-2008
Thu, 11-20-2008 - 6:59am

You've said it really well.

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-13-2008
Thu, 11-20-2008 - 7:03am

Congress is going to have to do something about CEOs extravagant spending on any company that receives federal dollars. Can you imagine they flew privately to that hearing? In separate planes?


What were they thinking?

Full length fiction: http://llhaesa.org/ (pronounced la.hay.ess.sa)



Full length fiction: worlds undone

"You have no power over my body..." ~ Anne Hutchinson

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-20-2008
Thu, 11-20-2008 - 7:15am

"The UAW always says that they will not make concessions."

Yup. Look at how many concessions the UAW has made over the past decades in watering down pensions, healthcare, workplace issues and any number of other issues.

Trying to blame the inability of our auto companies to withstand this crisis on the workers or their unions is a hoot.

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-24-2008
Thu, 11-20-2008 - 7:57am

A ticket on a commercial airline would have really helped appearances.

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