xsuddensam

Last Thursday Was the Bottom - It's Time to Get Back in

Like a wise man said about profits,"You can have the first and last 20%. I'll take the middle 60%.

Credit Crisis Review: ARMed for Failure

Brian Croner:

"Who cares if things go to shit? There is no social mobility in the US. So what's wrong with "crooks" giving a half-assed attempt to get rich? Decorate it however you want."

What's wrong with it? It's dishonest. Many of today's problems can be attributed to dishonesty. Ambivalence allows the environment in which dishonesty flourishes.

Credit Crisis Review: ARMed for Failure

Ishortyou:

Yup, these criminals knew exactly what they were doing; however, you left out the rating agencies. These schemes could not have worked without the the guys who rated these packaged sub-prime mortgages as Triple-A. There had to be a concerted effort to disguise and misrepresent these bogus "securities" in order sluff off this garbage to investors. It's real simple; nobody in their right mind would have bought this stuff unless they were fooled!

My question is why aren't we going after everyone involved from the loan originators, mortgage companies, bankers, rating agencies and others that were materially involved in this fraud? These crooks are slipping under the radar as all of our attention is on mitigating the problems caused by these scumbags rather than prosecuting them. I just don't understand.

Is the U.S. Banking System Safe?

User199792:

That was the "Keating Five", one of which is running for President today. Charles Keating went to jail for his part in the S&L debacle. John McCain and the others should have joined him.

Is the U.S. Banking System Safe?

Scooter-pop:

"I sit on a Privately Held Bank Board in TEXAS and can assure you things are tightening up, but remaining VERY SOLVENT thanks to CONSERVATIVE VIGILENCE!!!"

You've got to be kidding! It's "conservative vigilence" or better put, a lack thereof, that has created the environment that has allowed all these fraudulent lending practices to flourish.

Hypocritically, the conservatives who cry out for less government regulation and less government spending are the ones who want the people to bail out the perpetrators of these crimes.

I think it's disgusting.

Is the U.S. Banking System Safe?

Great article.

Fraud and corruption in the banking system need to be investigated. I don't think it will happen unless there is a citizen outcry. The bankers and politicians are in bed together and the few honest ones don't have the courage to call it like it is.

The talking heads like Kudlow, (who was in a Republican administration) are either ignoring the coverup or they are just plain stupid. In either case, they are doing the public a great disservice.

We need to get to the bottom of this mess, ferret out the offenders and severely punish them. Unfortunately, they have done so much damage that the future looks awfully bleak.

Banking Sector: Band-Aids Just Won't Do It

user 229748: "What is almost incredible is the magnitud of the so called "sub prime morgages. By definition morgage is a loan guaranteed by the value of a real estate property."

One needs to understand that the sub-prime mortgages were originated with the unreasonable expectation that prices would continue to rise. This expectation is no different than the expectation of rising prices of commercial real estate prices in the eighties which brought down the S&Ls.

The culprit is the Federal Reserve which unreasonably increased the money supply. It's real simple, when money is plentiful, lenders fall over each other trying to make loans. As long as the underlying security continues to appreciate, the risk seems to be mitigated. When prices stop rising, it doesn't take rocket science to understand the resulting problem. It can be likened to a Ponzi scheme.

These loan originators, mortgage companies, investment banks and rating agencies should all be investigated for fraud and malfeasance.

I'm not real confident that the politicians are willing to go after the fat cats that made a ton of money in these schemes and who regularly contribute to their campaign coffers.

Banking Sector: Band-Aids Just Won't Do It

User 89063:

Talk about naivety. A corrupt financial system knows no political party.