United States Heading towards a Depression?

Please do not lump me into a group, because you apparently do not understand what I have been posting for months now. It certainly does not amount to paying for her mistakes.

My point is, you single out individuals, when the problem is systemic. Alan Greenspan should be in court, forced to testify as to why he lowered rates, which triggered the artificial housing boom, and created opportunities for predatory mortgage brokers.

Yes, this lady is fat. She's probably not very bright. She may be economically illiterate. But she's been manipulated to this point, by parties with nefarious intent.

Since when was stupidity a greater crime than evil?

It doesn't matter if they do or do not. The FED is going to screw you by bailing out the banks. Until that enrages you, because bailing out the banks equates to a transfer of wealth away from all of us, this is going to be like the people who cry about government earmarks, when they are but a fraction of the federal budget, and will be spent regardless of where they go.

 

Great line Guerilla!!!

 

I think people like this woman are crazy.

"I was manipulated by some mortgage broker or realtor because they were tempted to manipulate me due to Greenspan's easy credit policy" - this is no excuse.

Deep down I think a lot of these people knew what they were getting themselves into. I don't think this woman is stupid. More irresponsible. It's so blatantly obvious that the figures don't stack up.

While some people have been losing their houses etc over the last couple of years others have been making fortunes in commodities, farm land, adsense, affiliate programs or whatever. Real opportunities are always available and its up to individuals to find them.

Rather than pointing the finger at Greenspan or whoever people need to start taking a lot in the mirror. Blaming others and having the victim mentality is no solution. In fact its completely dis-empowering.

People need to say, "No more will I blame others for my situation or expect the government to save me. I'll take personal responsibility for my own situation 100%."

When more people start thinking along these lines then you'll get more people voting for Ron Paul etc.

 

Good luck getting people to take responsibility for their stupid decisions. And from what I've experienced women are the worst when it comes to this.

 

It's not going to happen. There are a lot of people who think like this. That something is owed to them. That the government will save/help them. That they have no personal responsibility.

People aren't going to vote for Ron Paul. They are going to vote for whoever offers to change their diaper. That's a sad fact.

Not until the bill comes due. It could be this year, next year or in 2 generations. But I think even the most novice economist can recognize that when consumption exceeds production, bankruptcy ensues.

However, a tireless minority will continue to set brushfires...

It does not take a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men.​

 

Wait 3 or so years and people will have no choice but to take responsibility. There will be much wailing and gnashing of teeth.

The way things are going you're going to see up to 20% unemployment. Taxes will be raised and spending on welfare will be cut. There's no choice in the matter. People like this women will feel forced to do all kinds of work they previously never would have considered.

When times are desperate attitudes change fast.

Bottom line is that there are going to be a lot of people without jobs, bankrupt or on the verge of bankruptcy, and the government isn't going to have any money to help them while the dollar is tanking.

The sad reality is that the US is quickly heading towards what happened in Argentina a few years ago. Sir John Templeton is predicting that you will be able to buy property at 10 cents to the dollar. That's exactly what happened to Argentina. 3 years ago I thought this kind of forecast was possible but highly unlikely. Now it looks more likely than not.

 

I doubt it. Paul ran on a platform of freedom, peace and prosperity. The reality is that people as a mass are just not ready to accept that freedom is worth sacrificing for, peace is the only sane outcome and prosperity is under seige.

The forces that have manipulated us to this position, likely already have a plan when there is wailing and gnashing of teeth. There will be a new hero, some New magnificent Deal, something, and people will take the easiest way out that does not cost them their homes, televisions and lifestyles.

You cannot imagine how narcissistic and ignorant many people are. They have absolutely no idea how other people live in the world, even the modern, civilized western world, and what a contrast that is to how we live.

It will have to be a generational change, it's not going to happen to people who have been lazy consumers for 30 or 40 years. We're already losing the last generation that had to make real sacrifices.

We'll see. I hope it doesn't come to pass, but I agree that the projection is looking a lot more realistic.

I'm less worried about a financial collapse than what comes out of one. Martial Law? Dissident camps like the ones Haliburton is contracted to build? Suspension of free elections? Curfews? Government work programs? Rioting? Insurrection?

Too scary. I'm just trying to get my own finances and those of friends and family who listen, into good order.

 

http://www.sec.gov/divisions/corpfin/guidance/fairvalueltr0308.htm

Corp A: "Oh, what is this you are saying?"

SEC: "If you don't like the way your shit is priced, then completely disregard the prices."

Corp A: "Jackpot."

This is ridiculous. Go ahead you dumbass corporations price shit to whatever you want.

 

I think he knew this, and that is why he is creating a foundation for tomorrow.

The trick is, how to gather the most influence to be able to recommend and be heard on a better course if/when things do go sideways?

That is the million dollar question.

 

You really have to hand it to congress. The Fed and congress programs of making houses more affordable which are little more than handouts to banks and the building industry have no recognition whatsoever of the Feds role in the is debacle.

Instead there answer to the problems the Fed caused is to give even more power to the Fed.

 

Yup. For ten years they sit around thinking of ways to make houses cheaper and now that they finally got their wish they've put our entire economy at risk. Now what?

Well, we have to think of a way to use government to keep house prices high!

We paid for it on the way down, now we'll pay for it on the way up. Just imagine the unintended consequences we'll have to deal with a few years from now... $1,000,000 one bedrooms? Well, maybe, at the rate the dollar is going!

 

The housing crash is not over. Between mid-2005 and mid-2006, almost half of first-time buyers put down nothing at all on their homes, according to the National Association of Realtors.

10.3% of all home mortgages are in negative equaity. The rising cost of living and unemployment will force more homes into foreclosure. And rge downward spiral of prices will continue. In the bubble markets prices will fall at least another 30%.

There are a lot of unintended consequeces to the housing bubble. The government made a lot of money on capital gains, income taxes and prperty taxes. But it's no free lunch. Housing is now very unaffordable. Government bailouts are now being implemented to get people in their homes. Becuase, people paid more than they could afford at an inflated price.

 

Amen to that! My girlfriend and I just got our first home in 2006 almost perfectly at the top of the bubble. No money down

This is the part that boggles my mind. I guess a lot of people are paying even less than the minimum with their interest only mortgages. I'd rather not spend my life working for a bank so in 18 months we've knocked out about 15% of the principle. I figure even if we're forced to sell we could break even compared to renting.

Tell me about it, the house is expensive! No bailouts for us, though. We got a fixed mortgage and we make our payments so we get to be on the mortgage paying AND tax paying end of this mess.

And you guys were counting on my generation to pay for social security and the other debts?

Washington, "we have a problem"

 

You wouldn't lose any money unless you sell. A lot of people were in negative equity back in 1992.

I hear a lot of people that bought homes pre-1998 talk about how they are losing money even though they paid a fraction of the current price. That type of mentality just adds more to the bailout fire in Washington.

 

Well even if we sold it wouldn't be much of a loss. Homes in the neighborhood have only dropped by the amount of principle we've paid so basically its just like rent. Rent is rent and it really doesn't matter if it goes to your landlord or your bank. At least with the mortgage it will be paid off in 9-10 years.

When did the country go crazy and start counting the cost of shelter as income? I feel like the long-term mess that will have to be addressed in my lifetime is almost incalculable. I figure I'll be doing good if I can eat, pay my taxes, and stay out of debt.

 

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner.

 

Ding ding ding ding ding ding ding!!!!

 

Its hard to think positive about the US economy at the moment.

All the signs are pretty bad i.e Gold at Record high , Oil at record high, Currency has fell drastically against the euro and sterling.

Could be time to bury a few tins of beans out the back garden in case of emergency.

 

What are "tins of bins"?