Congratulations

Congratulations Corporate America,

You've received the bailout you've been waiting for, and I'm sure it will allow you to continue in the lifestyle you've become accustomed to. Many homeowners will still lose their homes, due to the toxic mortgage products you sold them, but hey, nobody's perfect. Best of all, you don't even have to pay the money back, the U.S. tax payers will gladly pick up the bill for you. Why? Because we understand that you can't be held accountable for your actions.

Why so sarcastic, you ask? It's because once again the American people are burdened with paying off either the Government's or Corporate America's mess.

What would I have proposed?

I would have proposed low interest rate loans to the banks, which they'd have to pay back over let's say 30 years. This way, the banks learn a lesson, and would be far less likely to have something like this happen again. As it stands, what will they take from what just happened? Honestly, the government just indicated that they can go out and do whatever they want, and if they get in trouble, "we're here for you."

An Open Letter to Mortgage Borrowers Waiting for a Bailout

I found the letter (quoted below) while searching for housing market related news. The statements are so timely and powerful, that I decided to repost it here:

This open letter is addressed to all of the struggling mortgage borrowers (and their lenders) who are sitting on their haunches waiting for the government to come to their rescue.

BY PAT SUMMERS

Dear Mortgage Borrower:

I understand that you have gotten yourself into some trouble. As someone who has made more than a few mistakes, I sympathize with you. I really do.

However, I am more than a little concerned by how eager our government is to intervene on your behalf. They want to bail you out with taxpayer-backed programs and loans. They also want to violate the sanctity of U.S. contracts by allowing courts to alter terms on mortgages. While this may seem like good news to you, it feels terribly unjust to me.

Unlike you, I didn't ride the wave of insanity and buy more house than I could reasonably afford with a loan that I couldn't feasibly pay back. Nor did I sign a legally binding contract to claim responsibility for your questionable real estate transaction. Nevertheless, there is a good chance that I will be forced to resign myself to the risk you wholeheartedly accepted not that long ago.

In fact, I am already paying for your mistakes. The Federal Reserve has made the unethical decision to weaken our dollar so that they could give discounted money to struggling banks, a.k.a. your partners in crime. If something isn't done soon, who knows how far they will take their unethical plan.

Now, you may be asking yourself: why doesn't this nutter just write to the government--the shady folks who are forming and allowing all of these diabolical plans. The truth is that like many people I have already wrote numerous letters to my representatives to let them know how I feel about mortgage bailouts. But until you do the same, I'm afraid that they will continue on with their destructive, election-year plans to intervene on your behalf.

You must know that it is morally irresponsible for you to expect other people to pay for your mistakes. Please do the right thing. It's not too late to take responsibility for your own actions.

Sincerely,

Pat Summers, Frustrated Taxpayer