LITTLE HOUSE ON THE MARKET

Here is my take on the financial turmoil over housing.

1. In a lengthy period of continuously escalating house prices, insouciant buyers projected that trend far into the future and felt secure taking loans that stressed their abilities to pay. They would peddle the houses, make bundles of money, and be free of the debt. Many of these optimistic purchasers were mere profit-seeking speculators and not people requiring places to live.
2. In the same lengthy period of continuously escalating house prices, insouciant lenders projected that trend far into the future and felt secure making loans to less than sterling silver - qualified borrowers. They would peddle the houses, pay off their obligations, and the lenders would earn bundles of money.

BANG! PSSSSS …

Those were the respective sounds of a balloon’s being punctured and of its going flat as the air rushes out of it.

Prices collapsed, Panglossian, unqualified borrowers could not make their payments, and Panglossian, business sense –deprived lenders came a cropper.

HURRAH!

That was the collective cheer of the two groups of morons when our executive and legislative branches of government rushed to an election year rescue with – what else? – bail-out dough from the inexhaustible federal supply of dollars.

I say the morons should all go down for the count.
“Yer pays yer money, yer takes yer chances.”
That’s the way of a healthy economy; I’m sick of moribund, welfare floundering.
No one ever came to my assistance when I made unfortunate investment decisions, and I’ve made some beauties.

CLACKETY – CLACK – CLACK

That was the sound of an inexhaustible federal supply of dollars; it is called a printing press. We print more money, so each unit of it decreases in value.

HURRAH!

That was the sound of my reaction to your correct answer to the quiz question, “Who’s paying to rescue the morons?”