Andy1234

Citigroup Makes a Good Move: Preparing to Buy Out Uncle Sam

I don't think it would dilute the shares....you are simply transferring the shares to new owners....not creating new shares correct?

You issue X amount to new holders and buy out existing X amount from the government.

Credit Cards: Do the Banks Own the Senate?

The first rule I learned back in the 90's is never trust credit cards.....the banks have much more freedom to move the interest rates on them. Buy a house with a fixed rate mortgage....this is some pretty simple stuff.

I don't have any credit card bills.
On May 15 12:42 PM Alan Young wrote:

> I think some "my balance sheet is clean so why isn't yours" posters
> miss the point.
>
> In the business world, if you take out a loan at 8%, you plan to
> pay 8%, and the lender can't come back and say, "now it's 24%." But
> if you borrow with a credit card, that's exactly what can happen.
>
>
> I can make a perfectly responsible decision to maintain a certain
> debt load at a certain interest rate, and then be ruined when the
> bank suddenly demands 2 or 3 times as much interest on that same
> balance. Of course I wouldn't borrow at such a high rate, but that's
> not the question here.
>
> Why are banks allowed to demand of credit card customers a privilege
> which would be a non-starter with any other kind of loan?
>

Credit Cards: Do the Banks Own the Senate?

Let's say you are responsible…..and rather than buying cadillac SUV's with little down….and little savings, or buying Seven for all mankind, Rock and Republic Jeans, Unlimited text messages on a phone bill of $100/month, Buying Beer every weekend, having a kid, etc…..let's suppose you ONLY buy these things when you can afford to….or possibly wait a couple of years to save before buying……..that you saved enough money to not buy it on a credit card….or buy a fixed rate loan. Even if I were to run up a credit card bill….I could go to the bank and get a low interest FIXED loan if I wanted to…..they send me in the mail all the time for a $5,000-$10,000 loan. Good credit comes from constraint….and financial education.

The problem with idiots…is by definition…they are idiots. Without any financial education…or possibly basic algebra math skills/exponential compounding…they will get taken advantage of. They will learn their financial education the much harsher way.

The problem with socialism….is it completely promotes idiot behavior…..and undermines anyone who is essentially a good citizen. You will be left with a bunch of idiots running around this country (either by purpose or not).

Credit Cards: Do the Banks Own the Senate?

I don't really get all these regulations?

I still think people need to educate themselves for just about anything in life....otherwise you will always get the short end of the stick.

Reckless spending should have harsh consequences that treat people a lesson. I am not a fan of the banks at all....but there has to be some constraint in the system.

It seems as though the "good" well positioned people in America are the ones getting treated the worst.

Government needs to drastically be reduced in size......and taxes lowered all around. The government itself needs restraint in spending.....and we need to increase the private sector. This would lead to more productivity and a higher standard of living. Right now we have things backwards.....which just increases inflation in the long run. (increased government spending, increased taxes, growth in money supply, shrinking of private sector).

Short Into the 'Bad Bank' Syndrome

I wonder if people realize that in a fractional reserve system.....banks create money out of thin air.

The reserve requirement from the last time I looked was 10% (it might be lower today).

They can leverage up to 9 times the initial capital amount....or create 9 dollars from thin air and only hold 1.

If they have a reserve requirement of say 3%. they can leverage up 32 times.

I am guessing that some companies might even be leveraged up to 50-60 times.

I know freddie and fannie were leveraged up to 100 to 1.

This means that very little losses get multipled by the numbers above. These companies are worth nothing....in fact they are probably worth a very large negative number. they will spit through billions like nothing.

If they leveraged 10-20-50 trillion dollars for all these banks....and they lose just a couple percent....they are done.

Throw in a loss of 50-60-70% on a lot of these homes....and they will require injection of trillions...multi trillions.

Do Paulson and Bernanke Really Understand What's Going On?

People should not buy a house without a 20% downpayment and a loan that isn't larger than 3X their salary.


Poor people not affording homes is their problem....not the markets. Most people in Europe cannot afford homes, Why should we infringe on some people's rights to enhance the life of others?

When did people expect they should get everything just because they have a heart beat?