simplesimon

A Dozen Notes on Our Manic-Depressive Credit Markets II

Re: the note above that while the dot com bubble was expanding, there were a few noteworthy commentators expressing caution. Chief among them was the late Louis Rukeyser, who, smiling, remarked, (words to the effect), "These silicon valley start up companies might make for a good investment...if they were only generating some income other than the sale of their IPO's ! "

Many of us, like me who visited Norway in 2003, and discovered $7/ gallon gas way back then; and a 25% tax on everything, at every turn...then, returning to the U.S., saw people driving Humvees, and Escalades without any thought to conservation, or mitigation of ostentatious display of wealth...including 4,000 sq ft. homes for a cool million, that NO one really needs...and cheap illegal aliens with no rights exploited in the rush to "rake it in" building , literally, tens of thousands of homes, mass produced and all virtually identical, built in (cheap to develop) farmer's fields, representing a two hour drive to gainful employment ( more egregious waste of fuel)...can you say "overproduction/over consumption"? Or how about "unbridled, vanity driven avarice"? There are "adults" in the world of high finance, born after 1965, who honestly don't know what a recession/sever market correction IS ! I'm afraid they're about to learn the hard way, when a little review of history might have helped mitigate the severity of this current crisis.
One last note about kids in high finance: the reporter following the democratic primary in Nevada/Las vegas, was beign chauferred by a young black fellow, who formerly was a mortgage broker, prior to the subprime meltdown-and now a limousine drive in Las Vegas -was asked by the reporter who he was going to vote for...Hillary or Barak. And the young man confessed that he wasn't allowed to vote, having been convicted of a felon.
(ouch)...a little screening of our mortgage banking employees might have been a judicious decision, n'est ce pas?