Posts tagged “credit crisis”

Solidarity wins! No auto bailout! Everyone gets laid (off)!

Honestly, I thought this was a foregone conclusion, but the hatred of the southern Republican Senators for all things union has foiled the attempt by GM, Chrysler and Ford to suckle from the bailout teat. Who would have thought I’d celebrate such disdain for a union? Not me.

Now we will see just how honest the Big 3’s dire predictions about their own futures actually were. I’ve said it before and now I can yell it from the mountain tops, let ’em swing! Nothing to see here people. The “free” market will sort them out.

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No bailout for Detroit!

Break the bailout!

Write Congress

and/or

Call Congress

Well, I was against the bailout for Wall St., so it should be no surprise that I’m against a bailout of the “big 3” in Detroit. Our total “bailout” commitment thus far tops $8.5 trillion, but this one should really piss you off. The thing is, my Wall St. stance was one of principle. This time, it is based on cold, hard facts. General Motors actually had a fleet of all-electric cars on the road over a decade ago, but chose to literally repossess them from happy owners to prevent the spread of the technology. That sort of near-sighted avarice demands punishment. I say, let ’em swing. As far as proof and citation for these seemingly ludicrous facts, look no further than the stunning documentary, Who Killed The Electric Car? Watch the trailer above, then go rent or buy the movie today. You will be compelled to contact your representatives and tell them to put the kibosh on any bailout for Detroit, though I have a particular distaste for GM.

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Bailout hits $5 trillion thus far. I’m numb.

Yes, you read that correctly, that is a “T”. No, we haven’t spent $5 trillion just yet, but we, the people, are now on the hook for that amount. This, according to a report from Forbes.com, citing research firm CreditSights. Yes, feel that bile rise up in your throat. Don’t worry, that is indeed the correct emotional reaction to this calculus.

But then you realize that you have a stalwart government in place, ready to spring into action with alacrity and logic. The man of the hour is Henry Paulson, former CEO of Wall St. investment house Goldman Sachs. Obviously, his recent past as a Wall St. tycoon won’t cloud his vision. Surely he can lead us out of this mess of corporate intanglements and towards a purification of our economic system. Obviously, the days of over-leveraged business practices are gone, right?

Write Congress

and/or

Call Congress

Wrong. Paulson’s answer, according to Jon Taplin and the New York Times: abandon the idea of buying ”troubled assets” (aka the infamous mortgage-backed securities) through the Troubled Assets Recovery Program (TARP). Instead, Paulson will lever up the rest of the $700 billion 20-1 (!!!) to, as Taplin put it, “get some real bang for the buck by loaning to consumer finance companies [aka Credit Card companies].”

Now, I know I graduated from business school way back in the dark ages of 2001, but to my trained eye, this seems to be the exact sort of behavior that got us into this mess in the first place. I agree that buying the mortgage-backed paper is a terrible idea, but 20-1 leveraging as a solution? Give me a break!

Just so we are clear, I’ll spell out my understanding of Paulson’s plan:

  1. Loan the rest of the TARP money to credit card companies.
  2. This, in turn, will keep those companies “lending” to consumers.
  3. This will then keep consumers out in the malls buying unnecessary shit, leveraging themselves even further beyond their means.
  4. Pat self on back for job well-done maintaining status quo that leads inevitably to the complete collapse of our economy.

Read the links. Do your own investigating. If my analysis is wrong, let me know. Then, I suggest you write your lame duck congressional reps and forcefully instruct them that this cannot be allowed to continue.

Two more fun facts for you: since the financial shit really started to hit the fan in September, Bank of America has increased my credit limit twice and Citi just increased my limit by thousands of dollars yesterday.

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