"This is a once-in-a-century type of phenomena... We're still nowhere near the bottom of home pricing"
-Alan Greenspan, Great Housing Ponzi Scheme Creator, July 31, 2008
July 31, 2008
Having caused the greatest financial mania in human history, Alan Greenspan now has these simple words of wisdom today for prospective homebuyers...
HousingPANIC Quote of the Day
“Bye, bye bear market. Say hello to the bull and don’t let the door hit you on the way out.”
- Jim Cramer, calling a bottom for stocks (again), July 29, 2008
BONUS: Are you buying, selling or holding?
Everything you need to know about the housing and mortgage bubble in one sentence
"In the four years leading up to the credit crunch Wall Street’s big banks paid themselves $250 billion in bonuses."
In other words, they stole the money, then we the taxpayers bailed them out. Shameful. Absolutely shameful.
July 30, 2008
George W. Bush - imbecile and former oil man - "we need to increase the supply of oil". HousingPANIC's new word for George W. Bush - "conservation"
America got the worst possible president at the worst possible time these past eight years.
And now we all pay the price.
HousingPANIC Quote of the Day (WARNING - HIDE THE CHILDREN)
"America is finished. We are going to destroy this country. Our economy is just going to unravel. The question is how much money is the world going to lose before it writes us off?"
- Peter Schiff, July 2008
HousingPANIC Stupid Question of the Day
How do you feel about spending 28% of your work day today to make money to send to the federal government, so that Chris Dodd and friends can spend it bailing out reckless and greedy people who 'bought' homes they knew they couldn't afford during an obvious financial mania, while you on the other hand made wise and responsible financial decisions?
Bonus question: Are you going to take this lying down?
Tom Adkins and Connie De Groot, this Epic & Historic Housing Crash for the Ages is for you
I hope they find new jobs. It must suck to be the village idiot.
Yes, this is called "piling on". Or kicking 'em when they're down.
Just getting it out of my system so we can all move on...
Corrupt GOP Senator Ted Stevens indicted on seven counts. One down, 99 to go.
How very appropriate that his home got him into trouble.
Greed.
Corruption.
Welcome to the American Congress, circa 2008.
History will not be kind.
Sen. Ted Stevens, the longest-serving Republican senator and a figure in Alaska politics since before statehood, was indicted Tuesday on seven counts of failing to disclose thousands of dollars in services he received from a company that helped renovate his home.
The first sitting U.S. senator to face federal indictment since 1993, Stevens has been dogged by a federal investigation into his home renovation project and his dealings with wealthy oil contractors.
Prosecutors said Stevens received more than $250,000 in gifts and services from VECO Corp., a powerful oil services contractor, and its executives. From May 1999 to August 2007, prosecutors said, the 84-year-old senator concealed "his continuing receipt of hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of things of value from a private corporation."
July 29, 2008
FLASH: S&P Case-Shiller index shows a 16% crash in US home prices. Down 28% in Vegas, 28% in Miami, 27% in Phoenix, 25% in LA, 23% in San Diego & SF
Someone wake Lawrence Yun, Connie De Groot, Leslie Appleton-Young, Nicholas Retsinas, Greg Swann, Mike Norman, Tom Adkins, Kendra Todd and the rest of the pumpers up. They're gonna have to figure out a way to spin this one...
S&P: Home prices drop by record 15.8 pct. in May
Private housing index shows home prices dropping by record amount nationwide in May
Home prices tumbled by the steepest rate ever in May, according to a closely watched housing index released Tuesday, as the housing slump deepened nationwide.
The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city index dropped by 15.8 percent in May compared with a year ago, a record decline since its inception in 2000. The 10-city index plunged 16.9 percent, its biggest decline in its 21-year history.
Here's a list of the 20 cities in the Case-Shiller index with the annual decline through May:
Las Vegas, down 28.4%; Miami, down 28.3%; Phoenix, down 26.5%; Los Angeles, down 24.5%; San Diego, down 23.2%; San Francisco, down 22.9%; Tampa, down 20.2%; Detroit, down 17.4%; Washington, down 15.4%; Minneapolis, down 14.8%; Chicago, down 9.4%; Cleveland, down 8%; Atlanta, and New York, both down 7.9%; Seattle, down 6.3%; Boston, down 6.2%; Portland, down 5.2%; Denver, down 4.8%; Dallas, down 3.1%; and Charlotte, N.C., down 0.2%.
Here's Peter Schiff's prescient 2006 speech to 1,000 soon-to-be-out-of-work mortgage brokers - telling them what was to come before it came
Watch all eight parts. This, HP'ers, is a tour-de-force. This, HP'ers, is the most brilliant presentation you'll ever watch on the Late Great Housing Ponzi Scheme.
This presentation is important.
And this presentation was so spot-on, from start to finish, you'll be amazed. Blown away. And regretful if you didn't listen back then, or today.
Part 2 is most interesting, where Schiff puts the blame where it lies - on the immoral and reckless fiscal policies of Greenspan and Bush, which created the most irresponsible debt-fueled consumption binge in human history.
And then Schiff gets into CDO's, AAA ratings on crap, liar's loans, renting money from a bank, why work when you can just own a home, ARM timebombs, why the whole house of cards was about to collapse, and what's still to come.
"As pendulums swing, they don't swing to one side and then stop at the middle.. So as expensive as real estate got, that's how cheap it's gonna get. People are gonna be completely amazed at the prices that houses are gonna be selling for in a few years. Amazed."
Peter Schiff saw it coming like no other. He gets it. He got it. And he is HousingPANIC's #1 guru.
Bravo Peter Schiff. Bravo.
HousingPANIC has this message for the FDIC and its incompetent head, Sheila Bair - PEOPLE OF AMERICA GET YOUR MONEY OUT OF WASHINGTON MUTUAL NOW!!!!!!
Looks like Sheila and the FDIC are HP'ers.
Hello Sheila!
Sorry we caused that little ol' IndyMac failure. Not the rampant and organized mortgage fraud. Not the lending to people with no jobs and no income. Not the criminal activity of Michael Perry and his gang of thieves.
Nope, it was little ol' HP and the bubble blogs that took IndyMac down. Odd, right, since IndyMac wasn't even on your troubled banks list (even though it was obvious they'd fail).
Well, if you liked IndyMac Sheila, you're gonna LOVE toxic lender Washington Mutual (in my personal first-amendment protected opinion)
Monkeys folks. The US is run by monkeys and political-appointee hacks. And when the going gets tough, blame the blogs. Unreal.
FDIC learns it ignores bloggers at its peril
The federal agency insuring bank deposits learned that it can't afford to ignore the blogs following its seizure this month of IndyMac Bank, the largest bank failure since the 1980s.
"The blogs were a bit out of control," Sheila Bair, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., told the San Francisco Business Times after a speech in San Francisco this week.
That's putting it mildly. Following the FDIC's takeover of Pasadena's IndyMac on July 11, widely followed blogs were speculating on bank runs on some of California's largest banks based on nothing more than people waiting for their branch to open or large deposits moving between financial institutions. The FDIC plans to pay closer attention to the blogosphere in the future.
"We're very mindful of the media coverage and blogs in controlling misinformation. All I can say is were going to continue to stay on top of it," Bair said. "The misinformation that came out over the weekend fed a lot of depositors' fears."
Big Brother is here.. Why the hell is the IRS going to get the credit card transactions of every American now, thanks to the housing bailout bill?
Things that make you go hmmm...
So, if you have an eBay business and don't report your income to the IRS - those days are over
If you say your income is $50,000 but you spend a lot on credit cards - you better watch it.
If you're a public official using your Visa card to buy hookers and crack, the IRS and the US government will be able to track you down (think Eliot Spitzer)
I'm for cracking down on tax cheats but this is weird. Here's the language. Someone explain to me 1) how the hell this has anything to do with housing? and 2) what is the intention of our fine government?
Payment Card and Third Party Network Information Reporting.
The proposal requires information reporting on payment card and third party network transactions.
Payment settlement entities, including merchant acquiring banks and third party settlement organizations, or third party payment facilitators acting on their behalf, will be required to report the annual gross amount of reportable transactions to the IRS and to the participating payee.
Reportable transactions include any payment card transaction and any third party network transaction.
Participating payees include persons who accept a payment card as payment and third party networks who accept payment from a third party settlement organization in settlement of transactions.
A payment card means any card issued pursuant to an agreement or arrangement which provides for standards and mechanisms for settling the transactions. Use of an account number or other indicia associated with a payment card will be treated in the same manner as a payment card. A de minimis exception for transactions of $10,000 or less and 200 transactions or less applies to payments by third party settlement organizations.
The proposal applies to returns for calendar years beginning after December 31, 2010.
July 28, 2008
HousingPANIC Exclusive - Five Questions with Peter Schiff
Here you go HP'ers - some great insights from The Man Himself, Peter Schiff, who was kind enough to do Five Questions with us today.
Join me if you will in thanking him for his time, and his spot-on advice these past few years. Mike Norman and Tom Adkins must hate this guy.
________________
HP: Assets including stocks, commodities and real estate are all deflating, while inflation is roaring. What's the best way to protect your wealth in this environment?
Schiff: Stay out of the deflating assets, which include real estate, most U.S. stocks, and all U.S. dollar denominated bonds and other debt instruments. Invest in foreign currencies, foreign stocks, precious metals, and commodities. Commodities are not deflating bubbles and recent declines merely represent pull backs in bull markets that should be bought.
HP: Are you surprised that Angelo Mozilo and Michael Perry haven't been arrested yet?
Schiff: No, and I am not sure that their actions will be considered criminal. The real criminals are in government and the Fed. I would like to see a few of them arrested, but I won’t hold my breath.
HP: Obama or McCain, or does it not matter?
Schiff: I do not support either candidate, but have mixed feelings about who I would prefer, thought I will vote for neither. McCain would appear to be the lesser of the two evils, but given how bad the economy will be during the next presidential term, it might be better to have Obama win as he and his big government philosophy will get the blame. That might set the stage for a Ron Paul Republican to take the White House in 2012 and bring about change for the better.
HP: Is the recent housing gambler bailout just the beginning of socializing this crash?
Schiff: Believe it or not the damage from the housing “bailout” will exceed the damage from the bubble itself. It’s typical for the government to first create a problem and then exacerbate it though misguided solutions.
HP: You still rent we hear. Any thought of buying yet? What's your signal to buy?
Schiff: Not a one. In fact, with more and more rentals coming on the market, there has never been a better time to be a renter. Government “bailouts” may slow down the pace by which real estate prices fall but ultimately lead to an even bigger decline. We are still closer to the top of the real estate market then the bottom. Patience will be rewarded, especially if none of your purchase money is saved in dollars.
Gee, what a shock (not). Bush & Co blow a hole in the US deficit, with a record $570 billion in red ink (and counting) planned for 2009
Your children, and their children, and their children, and their children, and their children will hate you.
Not only is this hemorrhaging of red ink disgusting and stupid, it's immoral.
Shame on George W. Bush.
Shame of Nancy Pelosi.
Shame on Harry Reid.
And shame on the American voter who put these idiots into office, and didn't demand accountability from their public officials.
Enjoy the $5 a gallon gas. Enjoy the $5 gallons of milk. Enjoy the job losses. Enjoy the soaring health care costs. Enjoy the loss of your state and local services. Enjoy the decay in our infrastructure. Enjoy the destruction of the US dollar.
Get ready for some drastic changes folks. As Obama will find out soon, we're broke. We're $53 trillion in debt, and counting. We've lost our manufacturing base. We don't save. We over-consume based on debt. We act as the world's policeman. And these imbalances can't continue.
Administration official: 2008 deficit will approach $490 billion
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The next president will inherit a record budget deficit approaching $490 billion, a Bush administration official said Monday.
The official said the deficit was being driven to an all-time high by the sagging economy and the stimulus payments being made to 130 million households in an effort to keep the country from falling into a deep recession. A deficit approaching $490 billion would easily surpass the record deficit of $413 billion set in 2004.
The administration official spoke on condition of anonymity because the new estimate had not been formally released. Administration officials were scheduled to do that at a news conference later Monday.
The new figure actually underestimates the deficit, since it leaves out about $80 billion in war costs. In a break from tradition -- and in violation of new mandates from Congress -- the White House did not include its full estimate of war costs.
What deadly sin was most responsible for getting us into this mess?
Lust
Gluttony
Greed
Sloth
Wrath
Envy
Pride
Gluttony
Greed
Sloth
Wrath
Envy
Pride
HousingPANIC calls for the immediate arrest of former Countrywide CEO Angelo Mozilo for documented judicial bribery (amongst many, many other crimes)
How many smoking guns do the feds need?
How much longer will we have to wait until this scumbag is arrested?
At this point, I believe a citizen's arrest may be called for, if the US Justice Department, the SEC, the FBI or the California Attorney General are all unwilling to do their jobs. Maybe Angelo bribed all of them too?
Angelo Mozilo will go to jail HP'ers. Eventually. For a long, long, long, long time. Take that to the bank. And watch for bit players like Richard Aldrich, the California judge that Mozilo bribed, to do some time too.
Here's the latest excellent expose from Portfolio. Also watch this report on CNBC.
Angelo's Many "Friends"
The Countrywide V.I.P.-loan scandal went far beyond a few members of Congress. An exclusive look inside C.E.O. Angelo Mozilo's secret effort to curry favor with lawmakers, politicians, and others who could influence the company's fortunes.
In January 2004, Richard Aldrich, a California state appeals court judge, decided to refinance his 8,200-square-foot house next to a Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course at the Sherwood Country Club in Westlake Village. He turned to a prominent Sherwood member: Countrywide Financial chief executive Angelo Mozilo.
Aldrich’s application was assigned to a loan officer named Robert Feinberg; the judge was seeking a $1 million loan and a $900,000 line of credit. By email, Feinberg alerted Mozilo that the credit line was “above what guidelines allow.”
Mozilo responded, “Go ahead and approve the loan, and close it as soon as possible. Don’t worry about this deal, it’s golden.” Countrywide further waived half a point, or $5,000 on the million-dollar loan. (Homebuyers can reduce their interest rates by paying points, which are equal to 1 percent of the value of a loan.)
That wasn’t Aldrich’s only contact with Countrywide. At the time he refinanced, a class action lawsuit against Countrywide was pending before the appellate court, brought by borrowers contending that the company offered an inadequate payment to settle allegations that it charged excessive fees for credit reports. That August, Aldrich was part of a three-judge panel that unanimously rejected the borrowers’ appeal.
According to a person familiar with the case, Aldrich did not disclose his relationship with Countrywide to the plaintiffs or offer to recuse himself. California’s judicial code of ethics states that judges cannot accept gifts or favors from donors “whose interests have come or are reasonably likely” to come before them, nor can they take out a loan at better terms than are available to other borrowers. Reached by phone, Aldrich denied receiving a below-market loan and hung up.
It takes a drunk. Here's George W. Bush, The Worst President Ever, admitting now what we all knew years ago - "Wall Street got drunk"
"There is no question, about it. Wall Street got drunk...that's one reason I asked you to turn off TV cameras...he's got drunk and now it's got a hangover, the question is, How long will it sober up and try not to do all these fancy financial instruments?"
- George W. Bush, The Worst President Ever, whose administration was asleep at the switch as the most out of control fraud-enabled financial bubble in recorded human history raged, July 2008
July 27, 2008
HousingPANIC Stupid Question of the Day
Which of these two has done the most damage to 21st century America?
Ron Paul on "The Mother of All Bailouts"
Shameful.
Disgraceful.
Welcome to the American Congress, circa 2008. Out of control, morally adrift, paranoid, in the bag of the bankers and REIC, and unethically reckless with the Taxpayer's money.
Simply the best Congress money could buy.
Sheeple, vultures and of course, realtors and their 6%
Realtor game plan:
1) Push sheeple into houses they can't afford, banking 6%
2) Watch sheeple lose homes and have their lives destroyed, while counting their 6%
3) Round up vultures to buy the former homes of sheeple, banking another 6%
4) Bite heads off of bats, howl at the moon and dream about the numbers 6 and 666
HousingPANIC Quote of the Day (that Lawrence Yun doesn't want you to see)
"I don't think we get strengthening in the housing market until late 2011 or 2012"
- Mark Vitner, senior economist for Wachovia Bank, July 2008
And then the obvious became obvious
Matthews: “Did you see FOX television as a tool when you were in the White House? As a useful avenue to get your message out?”
McClellan: “I make a distinction between the journalists and the commentators. Certainly there were commentators and other, pundits at FOX News, that were useful to the White House.” […] That was something we at the White House, yes, were doing, getting them talking points and making sure they knew where we were coming from.
Matthews: “So you were using these commentators as your spokespeople.”
McClellan: “Well, certainly.”
BUBBLETALK - Open thread to talk about the housing crash, mortgage meltdown and other stuff
Have at it. Keep it clean. Use tinyurl. Enjoy.
July 26, 2008
HousingPANIC Quote by a Bald-Faced Liar of the Day
"It's not the government's job to bail out speculators, or those who made the decision to buy a home they knew they could never afford"
- George Bush, The Worst President Ever, before he signed legislation in July 2008 to bail out speculators who bought homes they knew they never could afford, August 2007
And then the government decided that the taxpayers should foot the bill for the behavior of flippers, gamblers, fraudsters and stupid bankers
A sad day for all American taxpayers.
A sad day for anyone who made wise and ethical financial decisions.
A sad day for the free market.
And a sad day for your children, their children, their children and their children, who'll now end up paying for this disaster.
And to think, this is just the start. The bailouts are here HP'ers. The bailouts are here.
Housing rescue bill heads to Bush for signature
HousingPANIC Quote of the Day
"The government's efforts will not create a bottom for financial stocks because of the fundamental problem in this country: People carry too much debt against homes that are sinking in value, homes they really couldn't afford in the first place and homes that have become all the more burdensome due to the inflation that's ravaging their paychecks."
- Bill Fleckenstein, July 2008 column "The Repugnant Bailout Nation"
This is the best video I've ever seen on the Late Great $2.5 Trillion US Housing Ponzi Scheme.
When HP started in 2005, it was hard to get to the truth of what was going on.
No more.
Now it's all out there for everyone to see. All of it, the whole big stinking heap.
And yet the IRS, the FBI and the US Justice Department sleep.
And worst of all, our corrupted Congress, our incompetent president, our Wall Street run Treasury Department, and the unaccountable US Federal Reserve are putting your kids, and their kids, and their kids, and their kids, and their kids, and their kids, and their kids, and their kids on the hook.
Unless the people rise up and demand an end to the bailouts. And unless the Republicans grow some balls and stand up to the free-spending Democrats and their gutless President.
Hat-tip to FedUpUsa.org.
More banks just failed, and the FDIC who was asleep at the switch is now out another billion or so
Goodbye First National Bank Holding Company
Goodbye First Heritage Bank
Goodbye First National Bank of Arizona
Goodbye First National Bank of Nevada
We'll miss ya.
So will any saver stupid enough to have more than the FDIC limits in your Ponzi Scheme banks.
So will the bankers who paid themselves lavish salaries and bonuses while enabling mortgage fraud.
And so will the FDIC, whose laughably-low reserves are slowly and surely dwindling.
Get ready US Taxpayers for the Great FDIC bailout, coming soon.
Too bad monkeys were running the FDIC these past few years. Should have seen it coming. We did.
July 25, 2008
July 18, 2008
If it wasn't so true it'd be funny - "Recession-Plagued Nation Demands New Bubble To Invest In"
This one from The Onion is classic.
Bubble after bubble after bubble.
How else are we supposed to buy crap we don't need?
WASHINGTON—A panel of top business leaders testified before Congress about the worsening recession Monday, demanding the government provide Americans with a new irresponsible and largely illusory economic bubble in which to invest.
"What America needs right now is not more talk and long-term strategy, but a concrete way to create more imaginary wealth in the very immediate future," said Thomas Jenkins, CFO of the Boston-area Jenkins Financial Group, a bubble-based investment firm. "We are in a crisis, and that crisis demands an unviable short-term solution."
The current economic woes, brought on by the collapse of the so-called "housing bubble," are considered the worst to hit investors since the equally untenable dot-com bubble burst in 2001. According to investment experts, now that the option of making millions of dollars in a short time with imaginary profits from bad real-estate deals has disappeared, the need for another spontaneous make-believe source of wealth has never been more urgent.
Despite the overwhelming support for a new bubble among investors, some in Washington are critical of the idea, calling continued reliance on bubble-based economics a mistake. Regardless of the outcome of this week's congressional hearings, however, one thing will remain certain: The calls for a new bubble are only going to get louder.
"America needs another bubble," said Chicago investor Bob Taiken. "At this point, bubbles are the only thing keeping us afloat."HousingPANIC Quote of the Day
"I don't feel comfortable putting my money in any bank. What are we supposed to do - hide our money under the mattress?"
- A lady standing in the IndyMac line of desperation, July 2008
July 17, 2008
And then one Total Failure said to the other Total Failure....
"You know, God bless him, bless his heart, president of the United States, a total failure, losing all credibility with the American people on the economy, on the war, on energy, you name the subject"
- Nancy Pelosi, The Worst Speaker of the House Ever, speaking about The Worst President in the History of the United States, July 2008
Meanwhile, Rome burns.
HousingPANIC Quote of the Day
"I believe we have turned a corner and that our business is improving"
-Disgraced and soon-to-be-arrested former IndyMac CEO Michael Perry, just weeks before his company collapsed and was seized by the US government, April 2008
Ron Paul on Fox Business talking about inflation as the greatest tax.
America's counting on you Ron Paul.
No more Mr. nice guy.
The Revolution needs a leader.
Step it up. START SHOUTING.
Jim Bunning vs. Hank Paulson. Finally, a Senator with some balls. The other 99 of 'em - worthless. But Bunning's lookin' good out of the pen
"When I picked up my newspaper yesterday, I thought I was in France"
"Where is the money going to come from?"
And he gets Paulson to finally admit it - "The taxpayer"
Folks, watch Bunning do what Ron Paul should have done. Watch Jim Bunning tell it like it is. WATCH JIM BUNNING SHOW SOME RAGE!
To see a Republican dress down the Republican Treasury Secretary was inspiring. Maybe this shows the GOP, one person at a time, is on the way back to finding its soul. Hey, I'm an optimist.
Here's a list of the most "walkable" cities. Yes, you can live without your car.
You can live without a car.
You can shop locally.
You can avoid the gas station.
Really.
Here's a list of 40 big cities, led by San Fran, NYC and Boston, based on their 'walk score', and an article about the results.
Here's a better list, of walkable small towns, and another one with small and medium cities - note that Boulder is #1 (of course).
HP'ers know that I don't drive anymore - haven't for years. I walk everywhere, and take the trains, the buses, the metros and the tubes. But cities in Europe are built for this, not for the car. America is different. Or at least it was different. The change is gonna come. Quickly.
America's love affair with the car and suburbia is over.
Future generations of Americans are going to be looking for a different way of life - one not built around the car. Some cities and towns will get it and re-engineer, others won't. Some will see massive investment in public transportation, pedestrian zones, bike lanes and re-urbanization. Others will do nothing. And then Americans will make their choice.
And those homes in the far-flung exurbs that realtors were pushing?
Worthless.
Oh, you're not gonna like this...
I'm gonna be gone for a week folks - you're on your own starting Friday.
Heading to the Black Sea, rumor has it there's an internet cafe in town so I'll try to get comments up, but it's gonna be slow at best.
And yes, I know, I know, next week's gonna be interesting.
Get some popcorn.
And post things here until the 25th that I need to know...
July 16, 2008
FLASH: FIVE YEARS TOO LATE, FBI IS CONFIRMED TO BE INVESTIGATING LIAR'S LOAN KING INDYMAC FOR FRAUD. GREAT. WHAT TOOK SO LONG?
WHAT TOOK THE INCOMPETENT IDIOTS AT THE FBI FIVE YEARS TO FINALLY GET AROUND TO THIS, WE'LL NEVER KNOW.
Man, I'm happy to see this, but damn...
The very definition of "closing the barn door after the cows got out"
Michael Perry - you're going to jail. Your glorious frog-march-in-daylight is just days away. But you're lucky - you should have been arrested years ago. Mortgage fraud used to be a crime in America. If you're planning on fleeing to Mexico, you might want to get packing right about....... now.
Source: FBI investigating Indymac for fraud
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The FBI is investigating Indymac Bancorp for fraud, a source tells CNN.
The California-based bank was taken over by federal regulators last week.
Indymac's collapse was the second-largest bank failure in U.S. history.
A source said the federal government is looking into whether the bank engaged in fraud when it made home loans to high-risk borrowers.
The source said the investigation is focused primarily on the company, not individuals.
HousingPANIC Stupid Question of the Day
Do you feel like you're getting a good ROI on your tax dollars?
(considering they're going toward bailing our corrupt bankers and mortgage fraudsters, in addition to a stupid war in Iraq and interest on the stupid debt, instead of education, health care, job creation, infrastructure, science and you know, things that would make America a better place to live)
Ron Paul has a few things to say to Ben Bernanke. Too bad he forgot to ask hard questions.
Even Ron Paul is pulling his punches.
What we need is a politician who forcefully speaks the truth to power.
Forcefully.
Ron Paul should have eaten Bernanke for lunch. He didn't. He just whined, and whined, without asking hard-hitting questions.
Here's what I would have had to say, for starters:
"You, sir, have failed America. You have let inflation roar, you've bailed out your banker buddies at the expense of the taxpayer and the American worker, and you are corrupt. It is my goal to see you out of a job, and to disband your shadowy organization. My first question is, how laughable do you find the current government's inflation data, and are you also in favor of hiding the truth on the inflation data, because the truth would make the entitlement mess even worse?"
Here's RP. This could have been better. What would you have asked Bernanke if given the chance?
FLASH: Inflation up most in 26 years
America make sure you send a big thank you to Ben Bernanke and his banker buddies.
Your currency has been debased, and it's only going to get worse. And oh, these "official" government numbers as you should know by now are a crock of sh*t. True inflation is much, much worse.
Yes, inflation is roaring, and Bennie and the Inkjets could care less.
And all of it without a vote. Unelected leaders destroying America.
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Double-digit increases in gasoline prices helped push up the consumer price index by 1.1%, in June, the biggest increase in 26 years, the Labor Department reported Wednesday.
The unexpectedly large increase in CPI was led by a 6.6% increase in energy prices and a 0.8% increase in food prices.
Excluding food and energy prices, the core CPI rose 0.3%, the biggest increase since January.
The figures were worse than expected. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch were forecasting a 0.8% rise in the CPI and a 0.2% gain in the core CPI.
HousingPANIC Quote of the Day
"Heck no they're not saving, because their net worth is growing. If your net worth is growing, in financial assets and other assets, you can spend more than your annual income!"
- Michael Perry, disgraced and soon-to-be-arrested former CEO of liar's loan king IndyMac, October 2007
(hat-tip to BTC - everyone check out his report from the infamous speech where Perry gave the world these words of wisdom)
Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr on the Fannie and Freddie bailout
Hopefully one day soon the GOP rediscovers their Libertarian voice. Until then, they'll be out of power. Period.
The "oops I really said that out loud?" John McCain Quote of the Day
"Americans have got to understand that we are paying present-day retirees with the taxes paid by young workers in America today. And that's a disgrace. It's an absolute disgrace, and it's got to be fixed."
- John McCain, telling the American people his inner-most thoughts on the Social Security Ponzi Scheme, July 2008
July 15, 2008
Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you The Worst President in the History of the United States
Here's Bush on Fannie, Freddie, the housing crash and gas prices.
Idiot.
Unqualified, incompetent, arrogant idiot.
May future generations forgive us.
More historic images coming out of California of screwed savers camped outside fraudster Michael Perry's IndyMac bank branches - c/o the OC Register
I hope Michael Perry remembers these images after his arrest and conviction, as he rots away for the rest of his life in jail.
Rampant mortgage fraud perpetuated by Michael Perry and the management and employees of IndyMac caused this mess.
And now it's time for the arrests to start.
Now. 
Memories, sweetened thru the ages just like wine
Watching this again, knowing what we know now, is actually pretty interesting... Plus it's just really funny.
Meanwhile, the VIX coming up again on a 5-year high. Bearish sentiment is everywhere. Blood in the streets. Banks are failing.
Time to buy? Or would that be nuts?
YouTube video of the people who obviously didn't read HP, standing in the line of desperation outside IndyMac
Ignorance is not bliss.
What is it with sheeple? They stood in lines to buy "investment condos" not too long ago, and now they're standing in lines trying to get what's left of their money out of the bank who lent the money to investors in "investment condos".
When you're standing in a line with sheeple, you can pretty much assume you're screwed.
Ya gotta feel sorry for these people, to a point. I don't know what else we could have done.
HousingPANIC Quote of the Day
"This is a flare-up in the financial forest fire that is far beyond anything we've seen before"
- Christopher Low, chief economist FTN Financial, speaking about the insolvency of Fannie and Freddie, and bank collapses to come, July 2008
And then the banks started to fail, people got in lines, and the talking heads finally woke up
Good questions (asked too late) in this MSM report.
Where were the regulators?
Where was Chris Dodd?
Where was Ben Bernanke?
Where was Barney Frank?
Where was Sheila Bair?
Where was George Bush?
Here's two of the mortgage broker idiots who brought down the American financial system (NSFW)
I wonder what the mortgage brokers will do next.
Taco Bell? Used cars? Cocaine distribution? Back to the call center? Chain letters and Ponzi Schemes? Robbing old ladies? Amway sales? Herbalife?
Jail?
July 14, 2008
FLASH: HERE'S A PHOTO OF THE LINE OF PANICKED SAVERS OUTSIDE INDYMAC. THIS SCENE WILL BE REPEATED AT WAMU IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS. DON'T LET THIS BE YOU
And then Northern Rock came to America. In waves.
In my personal first-amendment protected opinion, WaMu will fail in the next few days. I have no financial interest in WaMu. I just want to make sure my readers, and their friends and family, know what's coming.
Do your own research. Come to your own conclusions.
The bank failures are here. Starting with the toxic lenders who fell in love with mortgage fraud and liar's loans.
Deal with it.
The bank failures are here.
IndyMac depositors line up for cash after seizure
PASADENA, California (Reuters) - Hundreds of worried IndyMac Bancorp Inc customers descended on the company's branches on Monday to withdraw their money, after regulators seized what was once one of the largest mortgage lenders in the United States.
Washington Mutual says its capital position is strong
SEATTLE (AP) -- Responding to a sharp plunge in its share price and investor worry about continued problems in the mortgage market, Washington Mutual says it has enough spare cash and strong capital ratios to handle the downturn.
HousingPANIC URGENT WARNING TO AMERICANS - GET YOUR MONEY OUT OF THE BANKS NOW
* Do NOT keep any money beyond FDIC limits in ANY bank
* Assume your bank will fail - do your own due diligence. Ask questions. Get it in writing.
* Are your mutual funds protected? Your trading accounts? Your CD's? Your money markets? Your 401k's? Know who has your money, and if it's protected
* Especially avoid banks exposed to Subprime, Alt-A and Option ARM lending
* Avoid all banks with concentrations in California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona
* Get ready for the next implosion - construction loans going bad in droves
* Tell your friends and family. Last one out's a rotten egg.
* You ain't ever seen anything like this folks. Unless your were alive in 1929.
* Get popcorn. Lots and lots of popcorn.
Many more US bank failures likely after IndyMac
NEW YORK, July 13 (Reuters) - U.S. banks may fail in far greater numbers following the collapse of the big mortgage lender IndyMac Bancorp Inc, straining a financial system seeking stability after years of lending excesses.
More than 300 banks could fail in the next three years, said RBC Capital Markets analyst Gerard Cassidy, who had in February estimated no more than 150.
HousingPANIC Stupid Question of the Day
You, the American Taxpayer, are personally on the hook now for hundreds of billions if not trillions of dollars, because of the greed, fraud and criminal activity of toxic loan kingpins Michael Perry and Angelo Mozilo, enabled by an army of do-anything-for-a-commission mortgage brokers and realtors, all condoned by incompetent and corrupt leaders like Chris Dodd, George Bush and Alan Greenspan.
So, how does that make you feel?
July 13, 2008
FLASH: THE UNITED STATES TAXPAYER HAS JUST BAILED OUT THE KINGS OF THE GREAT HOUSING PONZI SCHEME - FANNIE MAE AND FREDDIE MAC
* US Treasury increases credit lines, backed by mortgages that haven't been marked-to-market
* Government to buy shares, existing shareholders to get diluted
* Fed to open discount window and lend money directly to Fannie and Freddie at near 2% that we all know will not get paid back. Loans backed by dodgy mortgages
* Changes to be added to disastrous Dodd/Shelby Housing Gambler Bailout bill
* Senator Dodd's "everything's OK" statement from yesterday looking even more clueless or corrupt tonight
* This is the beginning, the first steps. As home prices keep dropping and people keep walking away from their depreciating debt-traps, it'll only get more interesting from here. Especially if Fannie or Freddie had to mark to market.
* Got gold?
Treasury, Fed move to rescue Fannie and Freddie
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The White House and the Federal Reserve moved Sunday to prevent Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from failing.
In a statement, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said the global reach of Fannie and Freddie necessitated unprecedented action.
The Treasury has moved to increase its existing line of credit to Fannie and Freddie. In addition, Treasury have been given the power to buy the two companies stock.
In a separate vote, the Fed board of governors voted to open its discount window lending facility to Fannie and Freddie. In return, Paulson asked Congress to rework a measure in the housing bill moving through Congress to give the Fed a formal role to work with the new GSE regulator that the legislation would create.
Senator Chris Dodd - we are all laughing at you now. Resign. Go away. You failed America. Stop digging.
That's it.
I can't take any more of this monkey.
Someone make him stop.
He makes David Lereah, Lawrence Yun and the Iraqi Information Minister actually look honest by comparison.
Sen. Dodd calls Fannie, Freddie 'fundamentally strong'
Embattled mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are "fundamentally strong" and questions about their capital are unwarranted, a top U.S. Senate Democrat said Friday afternoon.
"This is not a time to be panicking about this. These are viable, strong institutions," Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., said at a Capitol Hill press conference.
The comments came as the two government-sponsored enterprises continued to be the focus of growing fears they could be insolvent or could face a capital crunch. Shares of Freddie Mac were recently down 10% following strong declines earlier this week, while Fannie Mae shares were down 24%.
"The economics are fine in these institutions and people need to know that," Dodd said. There's no reason "to talk about failure," he added.
The FDIC has $52 billion in their tiny little kitty, used to insure $4.4 trillion of the $6.8 trillion deposited in America's bank accounts
Americans have $6.8 trillion deposited in institutions.
$4.2 trillion is FDIC insured
And the FDIC only has $52 billion tucked away to back the entire system.
One more time, the FDIC only has 1% put away to back the entire thing. And Americans stupidly have $2.6 trillion sitting out there at naked risk.
(side note - just think how dumb you had to be to have more than the FDIC limits sitting in IndyMac. Amazing)
In the end, after the banks fail, and the tiny little FDIC kitty is swiftly blown away, the 'insured' deposits will still be backed up. But you-know-who will be called upon to cut the check.
You and me.
The taxpayer.
And once again, if this happens, Bennie and the Inkjets would just get those printing presses going.
And the US currency emergency would go into high-gear.
Got gold?
HousingPANIC Stupid Question of the Day
Do you think your fellow Americans are paying attention now to what's going on?
HousingPANIC Quote of the Day
"I would reject a loan and the insanity would begin. It would go to upper management and the next thing you know it’s going to closing. I’m like, ‘What the Sam Hill? There’s nothing in there to support this loan.’”
—Audrey Streater, former Indymac underwriting team leader, June 2008
July 12, 2008
HP Exclusive: Shamed IndyMac CEO/Mortgage Fraudster Michael Perry Gave $2,300 to Corrupt Senator Chris Dodd
The stench coming from Chris Dodd might be even worse than the stench coming from Angelo Mozilo and Michael Perry. And that's pretty hard to do.
And the one committee who should be investigating the downfall of Countrywide and IndyMac? And the one Senator who should have put an end to IndyMac's fraud and corruption years ago?
You guessed it, it's Senator Dodd and his committee on banking, housing and urban affairs.
The fox is guarding the hen house folks.
And the nation is f*cked.
With Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac on the brink of failure, your corrupt monkeys in DC have just passed a bill to RAISE the size of mortgages they can buy
How can I put this simply?
Let's say you had an uncle who was an unemployed cocaine-using junkie.
But instead of putting him in rehab, you gave him your brand new no-limit credit card, and a kilo of coke. And the keys to your car. And your kids.
Yup. That about sums it up.
Senate passes mortgage rescue plan
Democrats are divided over important elements of the plan, including limits on loans the FHA may insure and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may buy. The Senate measure sets them at $625,000, while House leaders — including Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. — want the cap as high as $730,000.
HousingPANIC Quote of the Day
“I’ve read it in the press that Alt-A lending is ‘in between’ prime and subprime lending. Well, that’s true but not very accurate given the facts."
- Toxic Liar's Loan (Alt-A) lender IndyMac's yet-to-be-arrested CEO Michale Perry in March 2007, 16 months before his mortgage-fraud-infested ponzi scheme of a company collapsed and was seized by the Federal government
(they called them "liar's loans" for a reason folks. And mortgage fraud used to be a crime in America.)
July 11, 2008
RUN ON THE BANK FLASH: Implode-O-Meter reports toxic lender IndyMac now under taxpayer (FDIC) control (UPDATE - THIS IS CONFIRMED)
UPDATE - IMPLODE-O-METER SCOOP IS NOW CONFIRMED BY THIS FDIC URGENT RELEASE:
IndyMac Bank, F.S.B., Pasadena, CA, was closed today by the Office of Thrift Supervision. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was named conservator.
And any fool stupid enough to have more than the FDIC limits with Michael Perry and his gang of mortgage fraudsters, like his shareholders just lost everything
It's all coming apart now HP'ers.
All of it.
Quickly.
And HousingPANIC calls for the immediate arrest of IndyMac CEO Michael Perry for mortgage and banking fraud, securities fraud and Sarbanes-Oxley violations.
IndyMac under the control of FDIC
"The FDIC is in charge" was the verbal announcement ringing through the halls of IndyMac's Pasadena offices. "Everyone show up for work on Monday."
According to this source, $190 million was pulled in yesterday's run, and $100 million today.
Mr. Perry left for a haircut at 4:00 pm.
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