A Sense of Resentment Amid the 'For Sale' Signs

A Sense of Resentment Amid the 'For Sale' Signs

www.washingtonpost.com

The bailout doesn't smell right to the people of Manassas Park, where the foreclosure signs are as common as azaleas. They know all about bad debt here. This is a terrain of oversize dreams, misjudgment, financial calamity -- and empty houses. "Foreclosure. Foreclosure. Foreclosure," said Ed Merkle, 58, as he pointed to the "for sale" signs lining his street.

But Merkle, a defense contractor, said he has lived within his means in an era of easy credit. He didn't take on a huge loan even when his bank encouraged him to dream bigger.

"I've been financially responsible with my own money. Why should I now be responsible for the fact that you were not?" he said.

This may be a Main Street bailout backlash in the making. The details of the financial crisis are still hard for most people to follow -- what with talk of exotic "derivatives" known as "credit-default swaps" and so on -- but the central fact of the matter hasn't been lost on anyone in this Northern Virginia community: The taxpayers are on the hook for the bad judgment of others.

And they say they don't like it. They didn't break it, but now they've bought it. Political leaders and financial titans say the bailout is necessary to save the economy, but on the ground, in such places as Manassas Park, people think that the bailout will reward the wrong people. There's a sense that too many folks bought houses they couldn't really afford, banks urged them on, common sense went on vacation, and now the grown-ups have to clean up the mess.

"If I spent more money than I have, I don't deserve to have somebody bail me out," said John Owens, 45, a developer who lives on Eagle Court, where three houses have gone through foreclosure.

The anti-bailout sentiment appears to cut across class lines. You hear it from one end of Manassas Drive, the main drag through town, to the other -- from the small, Cape Cod-style homes built with G.I. Bill money after World War II to the muscle-bound houses newly risen along the golf course.

"I'm worried that the taxpayers are going to wind up paying for all this," said Arlena Elbaraka, 38, who lives in the manicured neighborhood of Blooms Crossing.

"Who ends up losing from all this? Us, right?" asked Rogelio Benitez, 36, a home-improvement contractor who lives with his wife and six kids in a working-class neighborhood on the western edge of town.

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I couldn't agree more. Those investment houses, insurance companies and banks deserve to fail.

This bailout sends all of the wrong messages... and the wrongest one is that if you screw up big enough the government will come to your rescue.

No bank, no insurance company, no investment house, no corporation should be allowed to get so large that its failure would so dramatically effect the national economy... that is the core flaw with consolidation and mergers.

This bailout will only benefit the wealthy. As inflation rises, and energy costs rise and wages remain stagnate it will push more people into bankruptcy and foreclosure... and this time it won't be those with marginal loans, it will be the more solid citizens, the backbone of this nation.

McCain and company are making noise about fixing the corruption on Wall street. The corruption on Wall street begins with them. It is the hard right anti-tax anti regulation crowd in the Republican party and their Democratic allies that pushed for eliminating regulation on Wall street... regulations that were put there for good reason... to prevent or stem the type of corruption that led to the great depression...

... and here we are again.

www.washingtonpost.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

If you are not outraged by this bailout something is wrong.

Even more outrageous is that both McCain and Obama are still making noise about cutting taxes.

How the hell are we going to pay for this otherwise? Pawn it off on our great grand kids?

If anything good comes out of this is that this is probably the end of foreign adventurism like Iraq... We can't afford war and bailout at the same time.

[edit on 22-9-2008 by grover]

reply to post by grover


Grover, this bailout dwarfs the cost of the Iraq war. Once you break a threshold like this, it's all too easy to just keep going. This will have little to no impact on our government's willingness to enter wars.

reply to post by grover


In my opinion, the worst of the resentment wont hit until next year, when it becomes much clearer what this *really* means to the average taxpayer.

reply to post by loam


You are probably right... but the real costs won't be known for decades...

... and burdman... while I might agree with you this crisis is going to dovetail into other looming ones on our horizon such as the baby boomers retiring and the drain on social security, the health care crisis, the energy crisis and so on that we may very well find ourselves so hamstrung that we have no other choice.

You know what's really funny to me about things like this?

All of a sudden you have all these people questioning why they should be responsible for those who mismanage their money, or don't work hard enough to keep their homes, and yet these same people are all for Obama and his plans for redistribution of wealth.

It's the same thing! Higher taxes to support "free" health care, more welfare programs, etc, etc.

People aren't connecting the dots here I don’t think. I don't want to turn this into a political discussion here because that isn't the intent of the OP, I just thought I'd point that out.

reply to post by grover


I couldn't agree more, grover.
It disgusts me that I'm going to be taxed by other's poor judgement when I have also been financially responsible.
I actually live with one of the "champagne taste on a beer budget" types and as a result, the utility bill they are responsible for is way behind and that particular utility is turned off every couple of months due to his fantastic(not) accounting skill...yet it affects me.

I used to think it was ok to live and let live because I trusted my fellow man to be responsible...not so much anymore.

Now, I am second-guessing my natural inclination and feel like maybe stronger words should have been used the first time the lights went out.
Too late now, I suppose...maybe next time around if there is one.

Originally posted by nyk537
You know what's really funny to me about things like this?

All of a sudden you have all these people questioning why they should be responsible for those who mismanage their money, or don't work hard enough to keep their homes, and yet these same people are all for Obama and his plans for redistribution of wealth.

It's the same thing! Higher taxes to support "free" health care, more welfare programs, etc, etc.

People aren't connecting the dots here I don’t think. I don't want to turn this into a political discussion here because that isn't the intent of the OP, I just thought I'd point that out.

what about McCain and his wealth redistribution? Arent they both socialistic?

But, but, dont forget even as we speak, they are hammering out an INSENTIVE PLAN for the minions, according to MSNBC. No doubt the psycology here is to SHUT THE NATIVES up.

Sadly, people will buy it and kiss the governments________. Until they really really wake up, if ever.