They need to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps!

[Whoha]

Originally posted by Colon™
He said it. You had foreigners buying $1.5 trillion of GSE debt on the assumption there was an implicit gov't guarantee on it and American homeowners benefited from it. Say nuh-uh to saving Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae and the world says nuh-uh to financing the US.

If you want the full faith and credit of the US Government, you should stick to things which are explicitly marked as such. As far as the housing bubble goes, No I wouldn't say that the American homeowner benefitted from it.

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
I guess we could just do nothing and go into another Great Depression. Would you like that better?

Have the financials come totally clean? If the answer is yes then our proposed liquidity backstop is worthwhile. If the answer is no then we just increased the size of our problem.

[Naked Gents Rut]

If you want the full faith and credit of the US Government, you should stick to things which are explicitly marked as such.

We can always switch to euro-denominated assets if you want to play like that.

[Vesayen]

I hate corporate socialism.

I'll simplify much of what is going on, for those who don't understand the stupidity. When firms this huge go under, they do need some money to prevent them from going to bankruptcy court and being torn apart, the damage to the economy would be too big.

[Whoha]

Originally posted by Naked Gents Rut


We can always switch to euro-denominated assets if you want to play like that.

Have fun riding the Euro down.

[Asher]

I don't approve of the bailouts, but to link the bailouts to welfare illustrates the failing of the Liberal Arts graduate.

RIght Wiggy?

[Asher]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
Hewlett Packard is laying off something like 25,000 workers, half of them in the USA.

They could stand to lose a lot more until they figure out how to make a quality product again.

[Imran Siddiqui]

The other thing is if people actually saw the content of these "bailouts", I don't think they'd ever wish those terms on welfare recipients.

[Colon™]

Originally posted by Whoha If you want the full faith and credit of the US Government, you should stick to things which are explicitly marked as such. As far as the housing bubble goes, No I wouldn't say that the American homeowner benefitted from it.

I'm afraid shoulds and shouldnts have very little relevance in the financial world.

[Kidlicious]

Re: They need to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps!

Originally posted by MrFun
So what are people's thoughts on the enormous corporate bail outs by the federal government so far?

I am especially interested in hearing from those who so fiercely oppose welfare programs for destitute families and individuals but who turn around and have no problems with corporate welfare.

Stick to your principles and demand that CEOS and other high-level executives pull themselves up by their own bootstraps!

I don't see any difference between bailing them out and letting them control the means of production. They have us by the balls anyway.

[Colon™]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
The other thing is if people actually saw the content of these "bailouts", I don't think they'd ever wish those terms on welfare recipients.

If the AIG deal goes well, Paulson will have every finance minister in the world wishing he could do a bailout.

[Patroklos]

I heard on NPR yesterday that some estimate AIG's aircraft leasing division (some 100 odd 747 sized jets) to be worth nearly 50 billion all by itself. When that is sold, and it is going to be apparently, that will cover a good bit of the lone right off the bat.

[Asher]

Originally posted by Patroklos
I heard on NPR yesterday that some estimate AIG's aircraft leasing division (some 100 odd 747 sized jets) to be worth nearly 50 billion all by itself. When that is sold, and it is going to be apparently, that will cover a good bit of the lone right off the bat.

You're referring to ILFC, the world's largest aircraft lessor.

They have over 900 aircraft worth ~$50B.

Problem is it's one of the best parts of AIG. It has annual profits of ~$600M with a staff of only 170.

[MrFun]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui


I guess we could just do nothing and go into another Great Depression. Would you like that better?

Yes - the hardening experience would build character.

[MrFun]

Originally posted by Ben Kenobi
Well I'm glad to see once again we are on the same side.

Why don't you come all the way over to the darkside Mr. Fun. It really is better over here.

Nah, I'm not coming over to the dark side.

But I think I understand now why come people on here support corporate welfare but are opposed to welfare for impoverished family and individuals.

I heard people scream self-righteously on here about how the government should never make any effort to bail people out of their failed home mortgages. And yet, some of those same people are in favor of the government bailing out failed corporations. Some said, "Those people who have taken out bad mortgage loans made their own stupid mistake; the government shouldn't bail them out." Wouldn't that same principle apply to corporations and their wealthy CEOS?

Of course, then we need to consider Imran's and others' point - that our economic situation would be even worse without corporate welfare. But I don't see why they have to be opposed to welfare to those who also truly need it - the impoverished families and individuals living on minimum wage or less.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Actually it appears that most of the people who would be opposed to individual welfare oppose this as well:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/09/17/aig.bailout.congress/index.html