Courtneys blog: I Am

in so many words, i suppose i am not worried about the market. historically, it has always recovered, and, am young enough that i’m not worried about sending my kids to college or my retirement. i am, however, quite concerned about the ramifications of our government’s response to what may not be so much a crisis as wake-up call. sure it would be nice to help people who are truly in need, but, i really don’t think bigger government is the answer. if anything, we should be heading in the other direction…

with respect to why we bought near the top of the market… it’s my fault. i told my husband i wasn’t having any more children until we had a bigger house.

jwhs blog: I Should Leave the House More Often

THIS is essentially what I’m wondering if Geithner and Company are sitting on to see if it’ll squawk; if the market confidence comes back and then starts to snowball in the other direction, they’ve got a way to restore monies in the market without ensuring that there is hard, cold equity behind it. It happened before…that’s how we got here!

I very much like your mention of swinging back into the shadow of the mean, and unfortunately, I agree. We as a society live in the excitement of the moment and will do an awful lot to enhance and preserve that because, when given the chance, we swing back to zero and never really stay alert once we do, although we should. I’ll have to explore this concept and phenomenon later; it’s a fascinating (though disturbing) one.

First, a question — why did you and your hubby buy a house at the top of the curve? Was it related to a job movement, other circumstances — or did you finally decide to jump into the pool of folks buying? Were you given a good offer, found the ‘just right’ house, or was the timing of your own and unrelated to the market? I’m curious…no doubt you had no idea that it was the top, otherwise you would have waited.

I do not envy your homeowner position, although I’m glad you can still afford your mortgage, like us, we have no decent equity and we can refi but only for a slight gain, so pretty much not worth the fees. Should I be angry at not getting a chunk of the pie? I suppose I should — there’s going to be plenty of folks getting something when I’m getting nothing of advantage; then again, I didn’t get a handout when the Katrina victims did, even though I think they’re morons for living under water, but at the same time, worth spending money to save. I’m not advocating spending money to get Joe Blow in his 4400 square foot mansion, but if my tax dollar can go to a family of four with young kids struggling to keep a roof, well…I’m just not that much of a bastard, I guess. The problem, of course, is that I wish that was the only scenario my dollar was going to, but you and I both know it isn’t. That’s the injustice. I only hope that bailouts of those schmucks that don’t deserve it are few and far between.

I truly don’t know how to resolve your mention of the standard of living inequity between us and other countries and the resulting offset in trade power and influence. You’re right and terribly poignant when you ask if someone really should be earning $70K out of the chute for a menial job, but how do you balance that so that it’s fair but not cruel? I don’t know as though you can without artificially controlling the financial atmosphere.

You’re so very right about the entitlement issue. We’ve become a system of, “gimme!”, and it’s screwing up a lot of things. Again, I don’t know how to correct that given that the folks running the system and those participating are both of the same mind. And as far as us sensical, intelligent folk being in a policy-setting position? The mere fact is that anyone with TRUE brains got out of politics and/or never approached it with a ten foot pole because, irony of ironies, we’re too smart to entangle ourselves with that crap. And so it goes.

I do, as a good liberal (I guess), believe that there are distinct roles for the government to play that it should — regulation of the market to keep things from going awry, regulation of civil liberties and justice, regulation of core services for the masses, defense of the country as a whole, education for our people, and regulation of projects simply too big to be handled by corporations or individuals (the space program comes to mind, although even now that’s being disproven). Government should step in when the odds are artificially stacked against an individual or group, striving to be as an equal, and attempting to live a fulfilled life like anyone else.

But you’re right, the line has to be drawn somewhere, and one of the biggest flaws of the modern system is that the line has become translucent. I’m not saying that there IS a definite line, but criteria are required.

I think you edge on two very good questions here. What’s the value of stalling? And when do we say “This is the point in which we can go no lower”?

I’m much to ignorant of the terms of this mess to make a full sensible discussion. I could give you my favorite soundbites or opinions that made me shout “Indeed!” to my car radio or my computer screen, but it would be nearly worthless chatter.

However, I will say this: As I get older, it feels more distinctly to me that there is a balance in all things, yet that every effect is caused. Of course we are low now, but it is not terminal to be low. While this is what most likely what “scares he beejeebus” out of some of us, keep in mind that much of this crisis is statistics. There will likely be a regression to the mean sooner than many people realize.

I think the magnitude is amplified by hysteria. We are not dealing in a situation where resources are necessarily scarce. Money and value (and associated wealth and poverty) are obviously relative concepts. The grocery store does not have significantly less food than it had yesterday nor fewer people wishing to eat that food. The difference now is that we perceive that yesterday’s dollar was worth more than today’s. (Again possibly regression to the mean that the last 10 years’ dollars have been overvalued, but that’s over my head.)

I do believe that balance will restore soon enough. Maybe if we can get out of our own damn way for a bit, we could stop focusing on correct the past. Maybe those of us not standing in soup lines can pass some soup to those who are (and yes, jwh can slap them at that time if applicable). And Maybe at some point during this mess we’ll be able to fortify some strengths and raise the economic mean a bit so that we’re better than when we started.

I don’t know, it just seems that we’re all realy scared of something so very intangible and manufactured.

P.S. To your point, Geithner and Co may come out smelling like a rose, but it seems to be another balanced issue. Attention and notoriety will (for the masses) regress into the mean of apathy soon enough after things settle out.

jwhs blog: The Sweetest Thing(s)

Am I my neighbor’s keeper? Yeah, yeah, foreclosures in our area will cause our property values to plummet further, but, at least I would be able to sleep at night knowing that our society did not reward and protect the irresponsible at the expense of people who took care of business. I’m tired of listening to the idiots elected to Congress by a society that is too apathetic to vote (or worse, votes for someone because he’s the Terminator) tell me what’s good for me when they dropped the ball by deregulating the financial industry in the first place. (Corporate America is a rant for another day…) Lessons “learned” from the Great Depression, my ass…

I’m tired of economists who have successfully predicted twelve of the last seven recessions (no, that isn’t a typo) talking about what will work when they all seem to patently overlook the fact that there is no such thing as free trade. In order for free trade to solve all of our problems, U.S. companies must be able to compete on equal footing with companies in China or Mexico or anywhere else where workers are paid pennies an hour. And that, my friends, means the lowering of the standard of living in the United States so that other countries can enjoy a higher standard of living. And we’re all fine with that? At the same point in time, should someone make $70,000.00 a year doing a job that they can learn to do in a day? Unions seem to think so. The government seems to think so.

Or how about tax breaks for companies that move their operations overseas while punishing American companies with what amounts to higher operating costs than those enjoyed by their competition? Tell me, if we cease to make anything in America, how are people going to afford the things that our new “service economy” provides? Credit? Ha. That ship has sailed.

All of this seems like common sense to me, which leads me to the conclusion that our elected representatives don’t have a flipping clue. Or worse, they don’t care. Hell, it isn’t their money that they’re throwing away.

Further all of this indignity with the fact that the state of California is going to raise taxes, including a new tax on the income taxes that one already pays (?!), and sales taxes to a higher percentage than those paid in Canada. At least in Canada they get “free” health care. The only people that get free healthcare in California are illegal aliens and Octomoms.

I am sick to death of this attitude of entitlement that pervades our society and has been perpetuated by the damned Baby Boomers. (Who are going to further bankrupt our country by living to ripe old ages… but that is another rant for another day.)

We’re not all in this together, Nathan. It’s us against them. And I’m not talking about a war between the classes. I’m talking about a war between people with sense and those without it. Our system of government was designed to prevent the whims of the masses from running away with the country, but, that system depended upon the fact that the people representing the masses were the best and brightest among them and had the best interests of the country, the country, not just their constituency or their coporate lobby, at heart.

Our country is broken. Broken. And it is going to get so much worse before it gets better. You’re right to be afraid. Very, very afraid.

The last point I am going to make, I promise:

One of the primary things that people should take away from a basic study of economics is that there is no such thing as a free lunch. No such thing as a free lunch. Our government needs to stop telling people that it can take care of everything. And we should stop looking to our government to take care of everything. In the words of Gerald Ford, “A government big enough to give you everything you want is a government big enough to take from you everything you have.”

Jen: Bitter much? Although I agree about the stupidity of the baseball crap (does anyone really care about A-Rod? I don’t.), I know there’s not much in earmarks (I guess it depends on what you define as such, of course) and while I intensely dislike spending taxpayer monies on this, and even if they don’t have an outright plan other than, “let her down easy”, I do think that it’s the better of the evils.

I guess I’m more of the thought of late that this whole private/public equity funding scheme may not work and the place may still end up tanking, but feeding monies into the system (while wasteful in any sane environment) may actually do more good than harm, so I’m ok with that idea. As like you, I hate the fact that this is going towards those who were stupid to start with, but as a leading economist said, this “idiot money” will probably save everyone else’s ass in the long run.

I just hope everyone I know weathers it ok, maybe switches a few habits to make us more efficient, more saving, and smarter about money, products, and priorities, but in the end we’ll all come out thinking, “Whew!” Here’s hoping.

it is very likely that the “stimulus” package will have the opposite effect on the economy. and frankly, i am beyond irritated that my tax dollars are being wasted to bail out the greedy, the foolish, and the ignorant.

i could go on, but i’m tired of thinking about it…

jwhs blog: Anniversary Challenge

nicheplayers blog: Moment of cuteness