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RonPaulR3VOLUTION
09-19-2008, 05:35 PM
I think we really need to combat this free-market, de-regulation blame that's occurring. This is turning into a battle cry to increase the size of government and to further regulate everything.

The blame must be placed where it belongs: on government intervention.

Maybe the C4L, or an individual, can put out an article debunking these claims? Perhaps even better would be a somewhat short yet informative video. Something like the political cartoons from a recent post here seems like it'd be a good start: http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?t=156219

[Frame 1: of Clinton saying how vital it is to force the market to provide homes for everyone]*
[Frame 2: of Bush saying how vital it is to force the market to provide homes for everyone]*
[Frame 3: Today's Financial crisis]

* Sourced below.

I’d do this myself, but this is not an area I have much experience with.. here is some information, as a starting point, for anyone who might be interested:

~~~~~~~~~~

“Just learned about the “Community Reinvestment Act” from the video.

Yikes.

The Community Reinvestment Act actually REQUIRES banks to make subprime loans. Couple that with artificially low interest rates set by the fed and no wonder we’re in this situation.

And people claim additional regulation is a solution? It is regulation that created the subprime meltdown in the first place!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_Reinvestment_Act ”

~~~~~~~~~~

“Barney Frank and the rest of Congress, along with Bill Clinton, who made it public policy that everyone - from a daycare worker to a McDonalds’ cook to someone on welfare - could and should own a house.”

http://market-ticker.denninger.net/archives/586-Welcome-To-The-USSA.html

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“Ironically, by transferring the risk of a widespread mortgage default, the government increases the likelihood of a painful crash in the housing market,” Paul predicted. “This is because the special privileges granted to Fannie and Freddie have distorted the housing market by allowing them to attract capital they could not attract under pure market conditions.”

http://lawfuel.com/show-release.asp?ID=19418

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New Agency Proposed to Oversee Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae
September 11, 2003

The Bush administration today recommended the most significant regulatory overhaul in the housing finance industry since the savings and loan crisis a decade ago.

Under the plan, disclosed at a Congressional hearing today, a new agency would be created within the Treasury Department to assume supervision of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-sponsored companies that are the two largest players in the mortgage lending industry.

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E06E3D6123BF932A2575AC0A9659C8B 63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=print

~~~~~~~~~~

From Wikipedia:

“Fannie Mae was founded as a government agency in 1938 as part of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal to provide liquidity to the mortgage market.”

“The Emergency Home Finance Act of 1970 created Freddie Mac. The goal was to create a secondary market for conventional mortgages, as indicated in the Fannie Mae charter.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Bush aims to boost minority home ownership
June 17, 2002 Posted: 2:21 PM EDT (1821 GMT)

“Too many American families, too many minorities, do not own a home. There is a home ownership gap in America. The difference between African-American and Hispanic home ownership is too big,” Bush told a crowd at St. Paul AME Church in Atlanta.

“They’re so proud to own their own home,” Bush said. “What we’ve got to do is make sure these stories are repeated over and over.”

http://archives.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/06/17/bush.minority.homes/index.html

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“A free market means no bailouts, Federal Reserve, fiat currency, subsidies, and protection. This is how socialism is working out for America.

Those looking to blame the free market are finding one in name only.”

~~~~~~~~~~

“EXACTLY. The whole idea of a free market is that companies are free to take risks and conduct business as they see fit, but they must deal with the consequences if they screw up. An analogy:

Would I spend my life savings on lottery tickets? Hell no, because the chances of bankrupting myself are far higher than the chances of coming out ahead.

But what if I could keep all the winnings and have a guarantee from the government that I would be compensated for any losses, making it a risk-free endeavor? Hell, I’d empty my savings, max out my credit cards, go after every loan I could find, and put every penny into lottery tickets. Then I’d collect my winnings and do it again!

That’s basically what’s been happening with the banking system. It works great until the lottery inevitably runs out of funds to pay for the winning tickets (i.e., houses decline in value and people default on their mortgages), and/or the government runs out of funds to pay for the losses. Then things get really unpleasant.”

~~~~~~~~~~

“Me too. I am tired of the government and the quasi-government agencies screwing up and everyone blaming the mythical free market for it.

Place the blame where it belongs: Reckless government spending, endless wars, artificially low interest rate, loose credit etc.”

~~~~~~~~~~

“The collapse of the housing market has served as a catalyst for the economy’s latest bust. Various federal mortgage programs through the FHA, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac have distorted the normal workings of the housing market.
“The Federal Reserve’s loose monetary policy and lowering of interest rates were a major spur to the housing boom. Low interest rates influence marginal buyers, those who are sitting on the fence, and encourage them to take on a mortgage that they otherwise would not.
“It is time for the federal government to get out of the housing business.” –Ron Paul

~~~~~~~~~~

Josh_LA
09-19-2008, 06:16 PM
or basically : STOP THE STUPIDITY AND KNEE JERK REACTIONS

klamath
09-19-2008, 07:02 PM
You have good points. I am getting so sick of hearing. "See what the free market did! We must have more government oversight. It has to reach a point where the government can't bail out it's own mistakes before peope realize it was the government all along. This attitude amongth the American people is diffinately going to get Obama elected as the new FDR with a huge mandate. Maybe we will get a world war out of the bargain again too.

Conza88
09-19-2008, 07:02 PM
or basically : STOP THE STUPIDITY AND KNEE JERK REACTIONS

Why don't you stage a coup d'état? :confused:

Follow the logical progression of your philosophy. Kill everyone who is oppressing you. Might is RIGHT. :rolleyes:

Good luck.

Conza88
09-19-2008, 07:04 PM
As far as free market condemnation goes;

WHAT IS THE FIFTH PLANK OF THE COMMUNIST MANIFESTO? = A CENTRAL BANK. (FED) IT CAUSED THE PROBLEM, COMMUNISM IS THE PROBLEM. (Collectivism)

There is a joining of the state and business. That is FASCISM, or what Mussolini the Italian dictator said, should have been called CORPORATISM. This is what is happening.

Capitalism my fucken ass.

Josh_LA
09-19-2008, 07:48 PM
Why don't you stage a coup d'état? :confused:

Follow the logical progression of your philosophy. Kill everyone who is oppressing you. Might is RIGHT. :rolleyes:

Good luck.

Uh, like I said, until I have the might, I won't say I'm right.

Josh_LA
09-19-2008, 07:54 PM
As far as free market condemnation goes;

WHAT IS THE FIFTH PLANK OF THE COMMUNIST MANIFESTO? = A CENTRAL BANK. (FED) IT CAUSED THE PROBLEM, COMMUNISM IS THE PROBLEM. (Collectivism)

There is a joining of the state and business. That is FASCISM, or what Mussolini the Italian dictator said, should have been called CORPORATISM. This is what is happening.

Capitalism my fucken ass.

Yep, everything written in the Commie Mani is wrong, good thing it didn't say drink water or that'd be evil too.

BuddyRey
09-19-2008, 09:27 PM
The OP's assertions are very true. But what is also true is that this message must be preached with compassion and understanding for their concerns. Most liberals mean well, but they are conned into supporting big gov't policies under the mass-promulgated lie that the U.S. has a free-market economy. What I always try to tell liberals is that we have a Fascist economy. A free market would mean gov't doesn't get to bail out huge corporations and titans of industry like AIG or Fannie Mae. If you gently and persuasively explain how big gov't actually leads to big corporations, you can get most of them to listen! :D

Conza88
09-19-2008, 09:52 PM
Uh, like I said, until I have the might, I won't say I'm right.

How's it feel to have been & to remain wrong, your whole life?

ladyjade3
09-19-2008, 10:01 PM
Like someone said in another post on another forum - the average American stay at home mom still has no idea anything happened. "Ellen" was not pre-empted. No government official knocked on her door. Nothing came in the mail about this. She probably didn't even get an email forward from a friend about this. The prices of milk, eggs, even gas are not that dramatically different than they were last week. She's like - something happened today? Oh, well - I don't understand or follow all that business stuff. They'll work it out. I don't care.

What about when, say gas hits $30 a gallon. And milk is somewhere around that too.

By then the government will own all the banks. Will they one day decide to add a zero to everyone's account balance? One day you have $1,000 in the bank, then by government decree, you have $10,000. Overnight. And you feel better for a few days. Then its hits the prices. Shampoo, rinse, repeat. $100,000 in the bank, and each time the news will applaud the government for stepping in and finally taking action to stave off financial meltdown. This is the bottom and now we can recover. But we never do. We'll all be millionaires soon. Scavanging, panicked billionaires.

Somewhere in this string of hypotheticals, that housewife, that joe six pack will get that something happened. And what conclusions they come to... well, that's partly up to us.

Educate now.

Josh_LA
09-19-2008, 10:02 PM
How's it feel to have been & to remain wrong, your whole life?

not too bad, are you so full of yourself you have ask me how I feel being wrong as if you're never?:eek:

Let's put your question in context and perspective.

I am certainly not saying I'm wrong my whole life about everything (and I hope you're smart enough to know that).

I was saying that, we can disagree on lots of things, but ultimately, government, thugs, social norms, all depend on one thing "MIGHT".

So, I certainly share lots of disagreements with you on our government and our system, but I know until we have some power and voice, criticism is virtually useless, this does not mean give up, quite the contrary, it means "act up or shut up". This is why I play devil's advocate with libertarians, Constitutionalists and anarchists.

But, I believe I am still quite capable of logical debate and am open to be proven logically wrong if you can tell me what's wrong with my idea that "might is right".

Do you not agree that all systems need might, whether from weapons or from voices or from collective power to sustain?