Billion(sss) Dollar Bull$$$$!!!
So, give billions to the greedy companies and their leaders who were catalysts to get us into this position, and expect us to not continue imploding?!
Update:
Congress approved Bailout Bill 10/3/08
Senate passes $700B 'sweetened' rescue package
By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS and CHARLES BABINGTON, Associated Press Writers
WASHINGTON - After one spectacular failure, the $700 billion financial industry bailout found a second life Wednesday, winning lopsided passage in the Senate and gaining ground in the House, where Republicans opposition softened.
In the House, leaders were working feverishly to convert enough opponents of the bill to push it through by Friday, just days after lawmakers there stunningly rejected an earlier version and sent markets plunging around the globe.
Record Setting Day, just in the WRONG DIRECTION!!! Tax payers bailing out greedy Wall Street?!
The only 'bailing' that is going on is represented in the picture to the left! We have some of the most educated financial analysts, economists, and resourceful people in leadership/political positions, yet our government cannot step it up?! Why do I keep hearing Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" echoing in my head?! 'Going down down down... (700B) of fire...', and to add fuel to the fire, what about the voices of our citizens? They're supposed to be represented in our House of Representatives and Senate, as well as every other division of our great country, but we the people have had no say so except local news authorities interviewing folks, asking them how they feel. How do you think we feel?! I am aware the average citizen wouldn't be able to totally comprehend the 'Bailout Plan', it'd add more time... but at least when you're reaching into our pockets, there could be some more 'inclusive communication' and awareness! I hope the trust we have given our leaders does not get abused.We are America, land of the free, home of the brave, and have THE most talented minds and resources on the planet! This crisis certainly is not helping the instability of our housing market, gasoline costs, health care issues, and other socio-economic challenges! Not to mention the overseas topics where our honorable soldiers are serving our country and fighting for freedom... We are not only in the "Information Age", but "Generation X/Y Recession Age". I love America, all she stands for, but it's time for tremendous action vs. talking about the infamous 'CHANGE' we've heard so much about! The people need empowered, government needs to be accountable, and we need to reinvigorate our economy, communities, businesses, and pride once again!
This information supplied by: TIM PARADIS, AP Business Writer:
NEW YORK - Wall Street's worst fears came to pass Monday, when the government's financial rescue plan failed in Congress and stocks plunged precipitously — hurtling the Dow Jones industrials down nearly 7 percent. The almost 780-point decline was the largest one-day point drop ever for the index.
The percentage declines for the Standard & Poor's 500 and Nasdaq composite indexes were even larger. And credit markets, whose turmoil helped feed the stock market's angst, froze up further amid the growing belief that the country is headed into a spreading credit and economic crisis.
Stunned traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, their faces tense and mouths agape, watched on TV screens as the House voted down in midafternoon the administration's $700 billion plan to buy up distressed mortgage securities. Activity on the floor became frenetic as the "sell" orders blew in.
The Dow told the story of the market's despair. The blue chip index, dropped by hundreds of points in a matter of moments, and by the end of the day had passed by far its previous record for a one-day drop, 684.81, set in the first trading day after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.
The selling was so intense that just 162 stocks rose on the NYSE — and 3,073 dropped.
It takes an incredible amount of fear to set off such an intense reaction on Wall Street, and the worry now is that with the rescue plan's fate uncertain, no one knows how the financial sector hobbled by hundreds of billions of dollars in bad mortgage bets will recover.
While investors didn't believe that the plan was a panacea, and understood that it would take months for its effects to be felt, most market watchers believed it was a start toward setting the economy right after a credit crisis that began more than a year ago and that has spread overseas.
"Clearly something needs to be done, and the market dropping 400 points in 10 minutes is telling you that," said Chris Johnson president of Johnson Research Group. "This isn't a market for the timid."
The plan's defeat came amid more reminders of how troubled the nation's financial system is — before trading began came word that Wachovia Corp., one of the biggest banks to struggle due to rising mortgage losses, was being rescued in a buyout by Citigroup Inc. It followed the recent forced sale of Merrill Lynch & Co. and the failure of three other huge banking companies — Bear Stearns Cos., Washington Mutual Inc. and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.; all of them were felled by bad mortgage investments.
And it raised the question: Which banks are next, and how many? The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has a list of over 110 banks that were in trouble in the second quarter, and that number surely has grown in the third.
Traders on the floor were stunned by the House vote.
"How could this have happened? Is there such a disconnect on Capitol Hill? This becomes a problem because Wall Street is very uncomfortable with uncertainty," said Gordon Charlop, managing director with Rosenblatt Securities. "The bailout not going through sends a signal that Congress isn't willing to do their part."
Wall Street is contending with all these issues against the backdrop of a credit market — where bonds and loans are bought and sold — that is barely functioning because of fears that anyone lending money will never be paid back.
The evidence of the credit markets' ills could again be found Monday in the Treasury's 3-month bill; investors were stashing money there, willing to take the tiniest of returns simply to be sure that their principal would survive in what's considered the safest investment. The yield on the 3-month bill was 0.15, down from 0.87, and approaching zero, a level reached last week when fear was also running high.
Analysts said the government needs to find a way to help restore confidence in the markets.
"It's probably fair to say that we are not going to see any significant stability in the credit markets or the stock market until we see some sort of rescue package passed," said Fred Dickson, director of retail research for D.A. Davidson & Co.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson indicated that the government would try again.
"We need to put something back together that works," Paulson said. "We need it as soon as possible."
On Wall Street, the Dow fell 777.68, or 6.98 percent, to 10,365.45. The decline also surpasses the 721.56-point intraday decline record also set during the first trading day after the terror attacks. Still, it was the 17th biggest percentage decline for the Dow and remained well below the more than 20 percent drops seen on Black Monday of October 1987 and the Depression.
Broader stock indicators also tumbled. The Standard & Poor's 500 index declined 106.85, or 8.81 percent, to 1,106.42. It was the S&P's largest-ever point drop and its biggest percentage loss since the Oct. 19, 1987, crash.
The Nasdaq composite index fell 199.61, or 9.14 percent, to 1,983.73, the third worst percentage decline for the index.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 47.07, or 6.68 percent, to 657.72.
A huge drop in oil prices was another sign of the economic chaos that investors fear. Light, sweet crude fell $10.52 to settle at $96.36 on the New York Mercantile Exchange as investors feared that energy demand would continue to slide amid further economic weakness.
And gold, where investors flock when they need a relatively secure investment, rose $23.20 to $911.70 on the Nymex.
Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald, said investors are worried about the spread of troubles beyond banks in the U.S. to Europe and other markets.
"Things are dying and breaking apart," he said.
The federal Office of Thrift Supervision, one of the government's banking regulators, indicated that the market was overreacting to the House vote and that its fears about the financial system are misplaced.
"There is an irrational financial panic taking place today, and we support and applaud the continuing efforts of Secretary Paulson and congressional leadership to restore liquidity and public confidence," John Reich, Director of the federal Office of Thrift Supervision, said in a statement. "We will continue to work diligently with our institutions to ensure they operate safely and soundly, and to restore stability to the marketplace."
Spokesmen for the Treasury Department's Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Securities and Exchange Commission had no immediate comment after the House voted against the bailout package.
Lawmakers voted down a plan that was different than what the Bush administration had originally proposed. There were restrictions allowing Congress to limit how much of the money goes out the door at once. It also included caps on pay packages of top executives as well as assurances that the government also would ultimately be reimbursed by the companies for any losses. The Treasury would have been permitted to spend $250 billion to buy banks' risky assets, giving them a much-needed necessary cash infusion. There also would be another $100 billion for use at president's discretion and a final $350 billion if Congress signs off on it.
But Wall Street found further reason for worry overseas, as the fallout from U.S. economic problems kep spreading. Three European governments agreed to inject Fortis NV with a $16.4 billion bailout. Fortis, with has headquarters in Brussels, Belgium and Utrecht, Netherlands, is Belgium's largest retail bank.
The British government, meanwhile, said it is nationalizing mortgage lender Bradford & Bingley, which has a $91 billion mortgage and loan portfolio. It was the latest sign that the credit crisis has spread beyond the U.S.
The economic news in the U.S. only made matters worse. The Commerce Department said consumer spending fell in August to its lowest level in six months, while analysts expected it to edge up slightly. With consumers already uneasy and the uncertainty from the financial markets likely to spill over to the rest of the country, the outlook for spending remains bleak — and consumers are the biggest driver of economic growth.
___
Business Writers Joe Bel Bruno in New York and Christopher S. Rugaber in Washington contributed to this report.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080926/ts_nm/us_washingtonmutual_jpmorgan_newshttp://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080926/ap_on_bi_ge/financial_meltdown;_ylt=AqcK0bnkeNHEE8fVpzyUGkpg.3QA
Are we able to even vote on where our tax dollars go in this matter?! I assume not since we're supposed to have the most solid economy in all the land, best/most talented/economically gifted leaders, guess they missed class the day they discussed screwing your country's citizens, or did they? I know we better get ourselves together, or we will be the "Next Roman Empire", imploding due to movements of facts & figures, and lack of action. Rather, we would like to hear about Paris Hilton or Brittney Spears, Palin's lipstick and Barack's comments, or McCain's reform plan consisting of more pictures of him with Bush than dollars they want to give away to the roaring fire!
So giving money to the very folks that are corrupt and have ripped off the American people for decades needs more money to continue their actions?! Seems right since the rise of lobbyists associated with such a deal, and more than likely even closer ties to political leaders having vested interests in the firms themselves, seems right in line with why we're here in this challenging position in the first place!
Email FWD from a friend:
THIS JUST MAKES TOO MUCH SENSE?!
Alternative to the $85,000,000,000.00 bailout of AIG:
Give $85,000,000,000 to America in a We Deserve It Dividend.
To make the math simple, let’s assume there are 200,000,000
bonafide adults in the U.S.
Our population is about 301,000,000 +/- counting every man, woman
and child. So 200,000,000 might be a fair stab at adults 18 and up..
So divide 200 million adults 18+ into $85 billon that equals $425,000.00.
Give $425,000 to every person 18+ as a We Deserve It Dividend.
Of course, it would NOT be tax free.
So let’s assume a tax rate of 30%.
Every individual 18+ has to pay $127,500.00 in taxes.
That sends $25,500,000,000 right back to Uncle Sam.
But it means that every adult 18+ has $297,500.00 in their pocket.
A husband and wife has $595,000.00.
What would you do with $297,500.00 to $595,000.00 in your family?
Pay off your mortgage – housing crisis solved.
Repay college loans – what a great boost to new grads
Put away money for college – it’ll be there
Save in a bank – create money to loan to entrepreneurs.
Buy a new car – create jobs
Invest in the market – capital drives growth
Pay for your parent’s medical insurance – health care improves
Enable Deadbeat Dads to come clean – or else
Remember this is for every adult U S Citizen 18+ including the folks
who lost their jobs at Lehman Brothers and every other company
that is cutting back. And of course, for those serving in our Armed Forces.
If we’re going to re-distribute wealth let’s really do it...instead of trickling out
a puny $1000.00 ( “vote buy” ) economic incentive.
If we’re going to do an $85 billion bailout, let’s bail out every adult U S Citizen 18+!
As for AIG – liquidate it.
Sell off its parts.
Let American General go back to being American General.
Sell off the real estate.
Let the private sector bargain hunters cut it up and clean it up.
Here’s the rationale. We deserve it and AIG doesn’t.
Sure it’s a crazy idea that can “never work.”
But can you imagine the Coast-To-Coast Block Party!
How do you spell Economic Boom?
Trust adult Americans to know how to use the $85 Billion We Deserve It Dividend
more than the geniuses at AIG or in Washington DC .
And remember, the plan only really costs $59.5 Billion because $25.5 Billion is returned
instantly in taxes to Uncle Sam.
What about health care, fuel costs, home crisis, education, poverty, unemployment, and other issues?! Seems our leaders are so disconnected from real life, the bubble in Washington has allowed them to be just that self absorbed that their support staff has to beg them to mention the challenges that the average American citizen faces. When will we have someone of substance, context, and intelligent action vs. fluff speeches, lack of action, and distracted by the bureaucratic money loathing compartmentalized deception of political fame/glory/riches?! Where did the spirit and patriotism for loving one's neighbor, country, and life go? Oh yeah, I can probably find it on the backs of dollar bills, as we all are duped by our elusive dreams of achieving them due to funds...
Eliminate capital gains taxes, discounts to tax paying citizens, tougher penalties for corporations...?! Your thoughts/perspectives? Give me a positive perspective, PLEASE! What's your plan, what would you do?! Do you feel our government could improve their responses to such challenges? Besides wondering 'who to blame', what do you think we need do to to 'change'?! See what activists and others feel...I tell you one thing, the picture to the left depicts a humorous view of what is going on in the banking industry! I don't know if the"tournament" metaphor is funny or sad, but regardless, we could all use a smile as life is short, so gotta have fun!
AMPLIFY YOUR VOICE!
Sen. Voinovich 202-224-3353
Sen. Brown 202-224-2315
Rep. Schmidt 202-225-3164
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid: 202-224-3542
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnnell 202-224-2541
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi: 202-225-4965
House Minority Leader John Boehner: 202-225-6205
Sen. John McCain: 202-224-2235
Sen. Barack Obama: 202-224-2854
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