Those so-called citizens that choose to refer to their President as a Communist should check out the following link -
http://www.desdecuba.com/generationy/
And don't fear; it's written in your official language - English.
They should get a clue about what a Communist country is really like. Then maybe they can begin to appreciate their own country. While they're at it, why not spend some time reading the writings of the founding fathers of this country. It will hopefully enlighten them at least a little bit.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Monday, October 26, 2009
Product Liability and ARM
Adjustable Rate Mortgages are the worst financial product ever devised. They are a defective product in that they target those most at risk with the most illogical loan ever conceived. The genius who created these monsters ought to get a public flogging, followed by 60 lashes, before sentencing to life in prison. Is it possible that anyone thought that they could issue millions of mortgages that would start at X per month, then rise to X + Y per month. A mortgage is supposed to be a fixed expense. The whole, sole and only reason for the mortgage meltdown boils down to one thing - ARM.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Is this how twitter works?
Watching Dave Matthews band on t.v. He's doing about the one millionth rendition of All Along the Watchtower. A large crowd is applauding. How lame. Turning the t.v. off, going out for a walk with the dogs.
Boycotting - Putting Companies on Probation
The Power of The Purse is Powerful
People are boycotting Whole Foods. Seems the CEO made some idiotic comments about health care reform. You've probably read about it in other media. Fantastic, a group of people with a lot of disposable income is using their purchasing power as a means of protest. Power to them.
I've done this for many years now. I wish more of you would do the same. Think about where you spend your money. Spend it to protest what you don't like and support what you do. Here's how I do it:
I have my own justice system. I put companies on probation or give them a life or death sentence. I am the sole judge, arbiter and decision maker.
I've done this for many years now. I wish more of you would do the same. Think about where you spend your money. Spend it to protest what you don't like and support what you do. Here's how I do it:
I have my own justice system. I put companies on probation or give them a life or death sentence. I am the sole judge, arbiter and decision maker.
Top Ten Sentences I've Issued
1. Microsoft Corporation. Crime - I paid to upgrade to the latest version of windows. I installed it on my computer downstairs and upstairs. 30 days later my upstairs computer shut down. I had to pay to upgrade it. The upgrade was crappy anyway. But they wanted me to upgrade twice; once for each computer. After much wasted time with the tech dept. I uninstalled the upgrade from my computers. Money lost by me $150.00. Punishment - boycott of all Microsoft products for 10 years. In 2010 I may purchase another Microsoft Upgrade if they behave.
2. Sams Club. In 2007, I renewed my business membership for $35. I went there and loaded my basket with approximately $200 worth of goods. The Crime - Only one check-out open with 15 people in front of me. The Punishment - Abandoned the basket, obtained a refund of membership dues. Sam's Club is on probation till 2010.
3. My local Dry Cleaners. I recently dropped some shirts off. They charge $2.50 per shirt. The Crime - counter lady acted as if I didn't exist. No acknowledgement , smile, zero customer service. The Punishment: Banned until I get tired of ironing my own shirts.
4. The Music Recording Industry. Crime - Count one of the Indictment - Overcharging. A compact disc sells for anywhere from $12 to $25. Musicians are a dime a dozen. Free music is available on FM Radio. Conclusion, they are over-charging. Count two of the indictment - Gestapo tactics. I've read articles that they have an enforcement arm that files lawsuits against people for hundreds of thousands of DOLLARS for downlowding some songs. Punishment - Banned for Life. I will never purchase another c.d. as long as I live.
That's it; this is not a 10 best list. I am the boss here, I get to choose how many are on my list. Just as I get to choose how I spend my money. It doesn't have to be fair or logical. After all the real criminal "justice" system is not fair or logical. Just thought of number 5 for my list.
5. The oil companies. Crime - Excess Profits. Punishment. I walk to work, ride my bike as much as possible, ditching my clunker for a high mpg car.
6. The internet. I report spammers. Don't spend a dime on anything unless I've thoroughly vetted it. I stop pop-ups. Ignore advertisement. There is no reason in the world why some geek should have an eternal vacation on the beach, while I pay $80 for some program that's already been developed and get another 10 million people to pay another $80 a head. Sorry, but software is not that valuable. A reasonable price for a program such as Word 2007 is about $2.50. Until they come down to that level, I'll just use Open Office for free. Look at it this way I give to charity already, like my local Children's Hospital. Why should I care about donating money to the Melinda Foundation just because I need a word processor. Then to make matters even worse, I tried the free-trial of Word 2007. I wouldn't want it on my computer if it were free. It is the most frustrating word processor I've ever encountered.
For Crying out Loud. Not Copyrighted. You can put the copyright where the sun don't shine.
1. Microsoft Corporation. Crime - I paid to upgrade to the latest version of windows. I installed it on my computer downstairs and upstairs. 30 days later my upstairs computer shut down. I had to pay to upgrade it. The upgrade was crappy anyway. But they wanted me to upgrade twice; once for each computer. After much wasted time with the tech dept. I uninstalled the upgrade from my computers. Money lost by me $150.00. Punishment - boycott of all Microsoft products for 10 years. In 2010 I may purchase another Microsoft Upgrade if they behave.
2. Sams Club. In 2007, I renewed my business membership for $35. I went there and loaded my basket with approximately $200 worth of goods. The Crime - Only one check-out open with 15 people in front of me. The Punishment - Abandoned the basket, obtained a refund of membership dues. Sam's Club is on probation till 2010.
3. My local Dry Cleaners. I recently dropped some shirts off. They charge $2.50 per shirt. The Crime - counter lady acted as if I didn't exist. No acknowledgement , smile, zero customer service. The Punishment: Banned until I get tired of ironing my own shirts.
4. The Music Recording Industry. Crime - Count one of the Indictment - Overcharging. A compact disc sells for anywhere from $12 to $25. Musicians are a dime a dozen. Free music is available on FM Radio. Conclusion, they are over-charging. Count two of the indictment - Gestapo tactics. I've read articles that they have an enforcement arm that files lawsuits against people for hundreds of thousands of DOLLARS for downlowding some songs. Punishment - Banned for Life. I will never purchase another c.d. as long as I live.
That's it; this is not a 10 best list. I am the boss here, I get to choose how many are on my list. Just as I get to choose how I spend my money. It doesn't have to be fair or logical. After all the real criminal "justice" system is not fair or logical. Just thought of number 5 for my list.
5. The oil companies. Crime - Excess Profits. Punishment. I walk to work, ride my bike as much as possible, ditching my clunker for a high mpg car.
6. The internet. I report spammers. Don't spend a dime on anything unless I've thoroughly vetted it. I stop pop-ups. Ignore advertisement. There is no reason in the world why some geek should have an eternal vacation on the beach, while I pay $80 for some program that's already been developed and get another 10 million people to pay another $80 a head. Sorry, but software is not that valuable. A reasonable price for a program such as Word 2007 is about $2.50. Until they come down to that level, I'll just use Open Office for free. Look at it this way I give to charity already, like my local Children's Hospital. Why should I care about donating money to the Melinda Foundation just because I need a word processor. Then to make matters even worse, I tried the free-trial of Word 2007. I wouldn't want it on my computer if it were free. It is the most frustrating word processor I've ever encountered.
For Crying out Loud. Not Copyrighted. You can put the copyright where the sun don't shine.
Friday, September 19, 2008
The Mortgage Crises
The real reason behind the mortgage crises is the inflexibility of the lending institutions. Let's say one is paying $1000 a month on a mortgage, with $950 of that going to interest. The payments are made on time, including an addittional $300 to escrow. Three years later the payment bumps up to $1300 and six months after that it goes up to $1500. Now the house note is $1800, including escrow. The amount going to principal is still the same - $50.00. That is a deal that does not make sense to the borrower. Initially, the borrower - someone with perfect credit and documentation of sufficient income to pay the original note - was sold on this ARM by a broker. The borrower was assured that he was getting a great deal. The house was purchased with no down payment, but there were closing expenses to the borrower of $8000. The broker, title attorney, title company and the lender all got a piece of that pie. During the initial three years, the borrower paid the bank $36000.00 but the balance on the loan only went down by a few thousand dollars. Now, after the loan has adjusted up, the borrower makes another year of $1500 a month payments. So by now the bank has gotten $54,000 plus the $8000 for closing costs. They still have a mortgage on the house. The borrower suddenly finds himself paying $5 for a gallon of milk and $3.70 for a gallon of gasoline. He realizes that he is getting screwed by the bank and can no longer afford to pay $1800 a month on a mortgage.
So the borrower, calls the bank and says, "I can't go on like this, you're screwing me". Of course, the lender is not going to drop one percentage point, much less 2 or 3 in order to keep the customer and obviate foreclosure. So, they go and foreclose and now they still have a piece of real estate. The real estate is not completely worthless. But somehow, the lender declares a total loss and the government steps in to bail them out.
A much better solution would have been for the lender to drop a couple of points off the interest rate. Or for Congress to amend the bankruptcy laws and allow cosumers going into Chapter 13, to restructure the debt in a way that the bank would still profit, get paid, no foreclosure, etc. But we don't live in a sensible world!
So the borrower, calls the bank and says, "I can't go on like this, you're screwing me". Of course, the lender is not going to drop one percentage point, much less 2 or 3 in order to keep the customer and obviate foreclosure. So, they go and foreclose and now they still have a piece of real estate. The real estate is not completely worthless. But somehow, the lender declares a total loss and the government steps in to bail them out.
A much better solution would have been for the lender to drop a couple of points off the interest rate. Or for Congress to amend the bankruptcy laws and allow cosumers going into Chapter 13, to restructure the debt in a way that the bank would still profit, get paid, no foreclosure, etc. But we don't live in a sensible world!
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Multiple Personalities - That's Me!
Found that pic on the right while evacuating for Gustav. The pic is from when we got back from Katrina. Our house wasn't flooded, just some trees and fences down. Life in New Orleans since 1965 is punctuated by Hurricanes, evacuations, and floods. This last evacuation, for Gustav, I even thought of leaving for good. Maybe move to Ashville, NC a city on top of some most livable place to live list.But here's my revelation.
It takes an adaptation.
A new way of life,
featuring evacuations,
that are nothing but vacations!
It's easy to rhyme words that end in "ion", so I could not resist it. But, I will make this an interesting blog. Next entry features a little biographical background, then my favorite topics - politics, cooking, religion, and whatever is on my mind. Today's thought is that many times when I tell people stories about my life, they don't believe me. The problem is that I know that I'm telling the truth. It's just that my life is so different that people can't believe that these things actually happen to me. Have you ever had that happen to you? When you know you are telling the truth but someone thinks you are lying? Let me know. Valla Con Dios.
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