Patrick’s Rants

It’s your turn. Help people instead of companies

We need to temporarily lock the interest rates that homeowners are paying – no upward ARM adjustments for the the next five years or more.

Housing prices need to adjust with the market. Prices are over inflated and need to cool. Step in to help homeowners keep their homes as opposed to supporting the ability of companies to make bad decisions without recourse. Yes, individuals need to take responsibility for their actions. The process of buying a home and obtaining a mortgage can be an overwhelming process; the banks have the primary responsibility of ensuring that purchasers properly understand their loans. If the banks have failed in this regard then they must be held responsible. Easing a homeowner into a better loan if possible or selling the home if needed should be the primary focus of this legislation, not enforcing poor or even criminal business practices.

No one wins in an environment where foreclosed homes sit vacant to be stripped of wiring and copper pipe. Occupied homes help to keep the crime rate down and the tax base intact.

If you are going to spend my money – and let’s face it, it is my money along with every other taxpayer out there – spend it helping people.

President Ronald Reagan stepped through the tall French doors of the White House Oval Office into the bright sunlight of a lovely fall morning…

The president stood at ease for a moment and looked out over the assembled guests, beaming with pride and satisfaction. He had promised the American people that he would get government off their backs, that he would deregulate the private sector.

I predicted more problems almost a year ago.

Twenty years ago, Ronald Reagan signed legislation that led to the end of the Savings & Loan industry. His administration allowed the S&Ls to slide ever closer to oblivion, turning a blind eye to the disaster shaping up across the country. Lack of regulation allowed the S&Ls to be pillaged and burned while Reagan, like Nero, fiddled happily away. Bush Sr was elected to office and started the takeover of the failing institutions through the Resolution Trust Corporation. RTC moved too fast, just as Reagan moved too slow – or not at all.

This is what’s wrong with the idea that there’s too much regulation. A little bit of regulation can go a long way, too much and the market begins to sink into oblivion. Not enough and you have RTC, Enron and Arther Anderson. Leaving the S&L industry alone in the late 80s and we might not be where we are today with our current mortgage meltdown.

Leaving a tiny piece of regulation in place that kept CPA firms from offering “consulting services”, a euphemism for “what else can we ‘sell’ to our clients?” might have saved Arther Anderson and even possibly prevented the implosion of Enron.

Leaving the regulation alone that controlled mortgages might have reduced or prevented the so-called housing bubble and the current pop that is beginning to affect banks worldwide. With his “what, me worry?” attitude Baby Bush encouraged companies to lend money to people who could neither afford their mortgage nor qualify if properly asked to.

Regulation attempts to reduce the greed factor; if it’s done properly. The whip-saw of Sarbanes-Oxely is a massively expensive choke hold on companies that will do little to prevent another Arther Anderson. A simple rule that prevented them from offering consulting services – in any way – to companies whose books they audit would have been sufficient.

We are seeing the extremist positions of Republicans over the last 35 years. Reagan stabbed the S&Ls in the back, Bush Sr grabbed the dagger and twisted. Dubya cut regulation on mortgages – arguably to allow those who are barely making their rent to own a home and it’s taking banks down around the world.

McCain has been along for this entire ride. We cannot afford to have his finger on the pulse of the country; the republican response to a slowing heart rate is to remove the oxygen mask and shut off the life support.

Listening to the RNC speeches over the last few days the thing that stands out the most is, John McCain can’t lift his hands above his shoulders. So what? Fred Thompson, whose acting I like but whose politics leave me sick, told the nation that John McCain cannot salute the flag of his country. As McCain would say, my friends… I can only shake my head. A man not in uniform is not allowed to salute the flag by raising his hand to the rim of his hat. It’s disrespectful. (Except a Google search turns up a 2007 law allowing non-uniformed military personnel to salute as if they were in uniform)

The speeches given last night were elitist. Guliani said,

“I learned as a trial lawyer a long time ago, if you don’t have the facts, you’ve got to change them.”

Well we know where he’s coming from then don’t we? Instead of long term results, he started the crowd chanting, “drill baby drill!”

I’ve written enough about about alternative energy on this blog. Nothing said last night changes my opinion and many, many others that we cannot drill our way out of this mess. 100 years of the automobile have sucked the oil out of the ground and put us under the thumb of the oil producing countries. Yes, we have to get away from oil. The steps are not, “drill baby drill.”

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Both Presidential candidates claimed they were in touch with the potential landfall of hurricane Gustav on the Louisiana coast. John McCain scaled back the first day of the Republican National Convention and visited the state prior to landfall.

Let’s get real though. Neither of these guys, Obama nor McCain, could do anything for preparation or to assist. Obama was “in touch” with the head of FEMA. This storm – the preparation, the success or failure – fell onto the state of Louisiana, the preparedness of FEMA after its last embarrassing ass kicking when Dubya was off vacationing and Brownie couldn’t get things organized. Yes, the blame fell everywhere – and this time they were ready.

But “my friends” neither Obama or McCain had a damn thing to do with it.