Thank You Barney Frank...

[D_Sir Fitzwilly Wankheimer III]

They weren't forced to do it. Just because people in our government pushed banks to lend money to those with lower income didn't mean that they had to create controversial programs that looked at every opportunity to take money away from their borrowers, overcharge them with fees at every single turn and not offer them the help they needed to pay bills when they actually needed it. And sure... it's easy to say "buyer beware" and all of that just like if this was a game of "Let's Make A Deal". But we're talking about a home... a place to sleep. A FAMILY NECESSITY. We're talking about getting enough money to own and maintain a home or apartment with the most humble of amenities. Not to get some "luxury condo" or two story house in the rich part of town. Surely, SOMEONE could have looked at all of this and tried to figure out a much better way to get money to those who needed it. That is, if that was the bank's real motives to begin with.

Unfortunately, money has a way in blinding people from what's really needed. It does, however, aid to some really good cop outs as to why the banks failed in general. I suppose you don't think the term "predatory borrower" applies here, do you?

I belive that you are soleey responsible when you enter a contract. If you aren't 100% sure what you are getting into than you have no one to blame but yourself. Ignorance is no excuse.

Those penaties are in place recoup losses when the high risk groups default. All integrity is lost. signing an agreement means nothing anymore. Oops my house is worth less than what I'm paying for it. i've got no realm personal investment in it I'll let the bank have it and use my mortgage payment to go on a cruise. People who earn their way into home ownership are much more likely to protect it and take care of rather than someone who just is given a loan. Look at habitat for humanity. ever go back a couple years after the fact to see what kind of shape the place is in? It's pretty sad.

 

[B_VinylBoy]

I belive that you are soleey responsible when you enter a contract. If you aren't 100% sure what you are getting into than you have no one to blame but yourself. Ignorance is no excuse.

Those penaties are in place recoup losses when the high risk groups default. All integrity is lost. signing an agreement means nothing anymore. Oops my house is worth less than what I'm paying for it. i've got no realm personal investment in it I'll let the bank have it and use my mortgage payment to go on a cruise. People who earn their way into home ownership are much more likely to protect it and take care of rather than someone who just is given a loan. Look at habitat for humanity. ever go back a couple years after the fact to see what kind of shape the place is in? It's pretty sad.

For some, it's not even an issue of ignorance. Many people simply lost jobs or incurred an exuberent cost such as a high medical bill and that threw their financial stability into a tailspin. Nobody can predict such things from happening. Credit companies would offer some kind of credit protection service, but at yet another cost. On top of that, some of these credit companies would only make the offer available to you when THEY decide to call you. Of course, when one doesn't need the extra service and pays every bill on time it's not a problem. But as soon as a real emergency comes along, they'll be the first to deny you the same offer for credit protection that they pandered to you just a week ago.

Things like this are one of many issues that a lot of people do not like about credit companies & banks these days. Even if banks had every right to establish their policies in this matter, it's obvious they cared more about their own bottom line and not their customers. You may say that it's unfair and that people are just living beyond their means. But if a sudden economic hardship came your way, and you had to choose between the mortgage, electric or food bill for the month which one would you choose? When it becomes an issue between necessity and survival, what would you expect lower income people to do?

Perhaps bank should have considered this before looking into extracting every dime they could from their customers? But they didn't.

 

[lucky8]

This is what happens when our law makers are literally in bed with Fannie execs. Frank can take his speech impediment and go fuck himself...he can take Pelosi with him too

Lack of regulation is the prime cause of this mess, and if anyone disagrees, they obviously know nothing of the true making of this crisis

 

[D_Cleon W Ballbreath IV]

I belive that you are soleey responsible when you enter a contract. If you aren't 100% sure what you are getting into than you have no one to blame but yourself. Ignorance is no excuse.

So why can't the banks take responsibility for their mistakes instead of passing the losses on?

 

[lucky8]

What's funny about everyone in this thread blaiming the poor is that the wealthy are just as much to blame, actually, probably more to blame, than the poor. Not only were wealthy individuals the people who were originating the loans and intentionally misreporting the incomes of tens of thousands of people *cough countrywide cough*, (which had to have been a direct order from someone at the top of the company seeing how many people this happend to) but tens of thousands of wealthy individuals were taking advantage of the system put in place to help the less fortunate in an attempt to make money based off of speculation. Couple this with investment banks and insurance companies creating ungodly amounts of obligations they couldn't possibly cover and the fact that credit default swaps don't have to be reported on balance sheets, it's easy to see that the wealthy are much much much more to blame than the poor. After all, it's the wealthy that created the TRILLIONS of dollars worth of credit derivatives (that weren't accounted for) that all of this bailout money is going towards paying off.

Big E is right, if you enter a contract, you should be held responsible. But he left out a very important part...the reason we are in this mess is because firms such as AIG, Goldman, Lehman, BS, Countrywide, Wells Fargo, and so on ALL made trillions of dollars worth of contracts, which they defaulted on. Should they not be held responsible for their ignorance as well? I just don't understand why people can't see this. The government is BAILING THEM OUT. It should be obvious to everyone that when the government has to bail a company out, that means the company fucked up pretty bad. What the bailouts mean is no one else will lend these companies money, which in turn means these companies are worth less than dog shit, solely because of their own actions. Perhaps they all forgot the meaning of the word 'DENIED'

 

[B_Nick4444]

John McCain 2005:

“I join as a cosponsor of the Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2005, S. 190, to underscore my support for quick passage of GSE regulatory reform legislation. If Congress does not act, American taxpayers will continue to be exposed to the enormous risk that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pose to the housing market, the overall financial system, and the economy as a whole.”

 

[dreamer20]

John McCain 2005:

“I join as a cosponsor of the Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2005, S. 190, to underscore my support for quick passage of GSE regulatory reform legislation. If Congress does not act, American taxpayers will continue to be exposed to the enormous risk that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pose to the housing market, the overall financial system, and the economy as a whole.”

John McCain signed on to the bill after it was dead, making his action nothing but a sad, sorry publicity stunt as shown by mindseye here:

16

He signed on as a co-sponsor to that bill sixteen months after it was introduced, and ten months after it had been killed in committee by its Republican chair, Richard Shelby.

21