The Bailout: What It Means for Consumers

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This is just more trickle down economics. Give it to the rich and its supposed to trickle down to the rest of us. It ain't happened yet. All that's been trickling down to the average person is higher and higher debt. Why doesn't the government invest $700 billion dollars in building low-income housing, replacing the roads and bridges that are falling down, nationalizing health care? That would create jobs and something of actual measurable value. Instead with Bush's plan, taxpayers are going to be buying bad real estate loans and hoping someone will make them good. The problem is the whole capitalist system is prone to crises and monopolies. Bush's plan won't correct the systemic crises. Only working people can do that by standing together to demand a better system!

Anne of WA 9:09PM September 25, 2008

Sorry, but I really hope there is no bailout. Believe me, my family will feel the pain along with everyone else, and we may never get to buy our first house at all, but this is long overdue. Most Americans, not just Wall Street fat cats, have become accustomed to living way beyond their means, and it's high time we all learned to stick to our cash budget. Though it would definitely hurt for a while, in the long run, America will be better off and stronger for it. If, on the other hand, the bailout passes, Wall Street and everyone else will have learned nothing and will resume business as usual at the earliest opportunity. Just like the college kid, if Mom & Dad keep bailing him out, he'll never learn responsible money management. We should expect absolutely no less than this from people who are supposed to be professional money managers.

Mrs. Brewer of VA 8:21PM September 25, 2008

Well, what is next, we spend, spend, and spend all for the sake of what. Then when we run out of money, we just create so more. Someone sit on wall street and decides a percentages and interest rates, and were off and running again to a dream( no longer the American dream, just a dream). I not even surprised that this country has gotten itself into another financial fickle. Meaning lets just create another loop hole to climb in and out of, we can fix it later. So now that we have made all REAL MONEY disappear, what is all the scattering about wasn't this also part of the economic plan? This congress already knows what they are going to do to bail these banks out (Lord give me understand), they just really have to figure how well they can attempt to scare no I mean tell the american people they must believe THIS ONE or this will mean a disaster for everything you have worked for. The ironic thing about this whole thing is the BANKS mess up, and we the people are suppose to buy this bailout. The same institutions who if for some real life situation we fall thirty days behind, will slam us so hard with penalties and late fees, and don't really care about your personal situations. Nice try congress, and I not even going to attempt to blame Bush, somebody got to be the spokes person for this on, what does he have to lose. Whatever, happen to honest men and women who really had a glimps of the american dream. I suppose this will hallmark our new understanding of debt and credit. Let's see spending -no currency + interest rates + overextended credit +balancing already jacked-up budget=BAILOUT Clean slate to start all over again

Marquita of PA 5:22PM September 25, 2008

When my wife and I took out our first mortgage we were sweating bullets hoping that we could make the grade and even get a loan. Well we did and I'm happy (and proud to say) that we've never missed a payment, never paid a late fee.
We don't buy what we can't afford. That's the way we were raised.
Now we are being asked to reward CEOs (supposedly the most intelligent among us) for gambling away money entrusted to them by their stock holders. We should give them MORE money, when they can walk away with millions because of their 'golden parachutes'. If the guy working at the local 7-11 comes up a few bucks short in his register HE has to buck up!
Why don't we ask the oil companies (who have made more money in the last year than any other business in the history of the world) to lend the money?
Tax dollars should pay teachers, cops, firemen and fix roads. NOT line the pockets of the already super rich!

Paul Hashagen of NY 4:47PM September 25, 2008

build bombs and send them

jasper of MA 3:09PM September 25, 2008

I am curious how exactly this is going to be handled by the next president. It may be a move by Bush where it is his legacy about how things went for him but does it hurt or help the next president, whoever it may be?

Luke @ Money and Fitness of CO 2:24PM September 25, 2008

Like many Americans I am wary of lending 700 Billion dollars to business that were supposed to be financially savvy and yet got us into this mess. Yet I am also fearful of the consequences if we do not bail out the situation. It should be a requirement that businesses who do get bailed out do not give their executives any type of Golden Parachutes. If we must suffer, so should they.

Anne Serrano of NY 2:15PM September 25, 2008

Last week I was at Pier 1 in Brooklyn looking at the Manhattan skyline, when my friend said, look it's the AIG building. And I responded by saying we owned it now....
Cheap credit is bad credit. Expensive credit is bad credit. If we can make credit a little harder to obtain but not ridiculously hard, maybe we'll be better off.
I don't Wall Street to fail, as I just realized that NYC's tax base includes Wall Street's performance and taxes on employee salaries. Wall Street's failure would mean less money in the city coffers. Less money in the city coffers means budget cuts. Budget cuts mean I probably won't get a job as a mental health counselor in one of the public sector agencies in the city.
I guess the bailout is good, but my question is where the heck are we going to find 700 billion dollars?

Veronica of NY 2:14PM September 25, 2008

Interest rates are too low to compensate for both inflation and risk AND THEY HAVE BEEN FOR YEARS.
9% Mortgages would have prevented much of the housing value bubble and over-building in size of houses.
7% Bank CDS would be a viable alternative for your retirement savings, instead of stocks as the only game in town
2% in the middle for "matching" yur money with a borrower is plenty.
Find me a president who knows we must raise both interest and taxes and I'll vote for him.
As for the "bailout", 80% of those Republicans had better be on it. If Democrats pass this for Republicans (who skate away singing free market and deregulation), Democrats are CRAZY.

of 1:59PM September 25, 2008