February 18, 2009
The Worst Is Yet To Come
I’m trying really hard not to like President Obama so damn much. As a Republican, my views of government are dramatically different, but I’m still concerned about health care, the fact that Social Security is bankrupt, education, environmental issues, abortion (I’m against it) and the economy.
Lately, while reading about our President’s plans and listening to reporters talking about his first month in office, when I hear something I don’t like, I’ve been giving President Obama a pass. Because I like him. I may not agree with him, but I’m no Rush Limbaugh. I don’t want the President to fail.
However, when I read news articles like these, my blood boils.
His goal is to prevent millions of American families from losing their houses because they can’t make mortgage payments.
I confess. I reacted first. I was angry. If I don’t make my mortgage payment, does that mean I get a free pass? A free house? Wrong. If I don’t pay my mortgage, the bank will take my house. No one is going to step in and save my ass.
Then I read this:
“We must stem the spread of foreclosures and falling home values for all Americans, and do everything we can to help responsible homeowners stay in their homes,” Obama said Tuesday as he signed his tax cut and spending package into law.
Okay, that’s better. The President wants to help the responsible homeowners. Wait a second. How will the government determine who is responsible and who is simply looking for a free ride? The article says that it is unclear who will qualify for relief.
My only concern is the message this new plan is sending to American tax-payers. Why do some Americans feel entitled to owning things they can’t afford?
If you came to visit me, I’d show you the big and beautiful homes that are being built in a subdivision near my neighborhood. These homes are appraised in the $250,000 to $400,000 range. In flippin’ Wisconsin. Only doctors, lawyers, and bankers make enough money to afford those mortgages. I live in a small town of less than 30,000 people, most of which hold jobs in the school district or insurance industry. Not many can afford the houses they live in.
Stevens Point (and surrounding areas) used to be a thriving paper mill city, but with the economy in the tubes, mill workers are being laid off left and right. They have been for years.
Wisconsin Rapids, a city twenty-two miles away, was once a boom town, with people living high off the hog and building huge houses. In the last ten years, thousands of millwrights were given the boot and slowly the city has become a ghost town. Numerous business have closed their doors, hundreds of homes have gone into foreclosure and people have been forced to move to places where they take the first available job they can find, even if it’s minimum wage.
Working in a title company part-time, I cannot count how many foreclosures I’ve seen. The number one reason for these is medical bills. The second highest reason? People buying houses they knew they can’t afford. What were they thinking? Were they praying for a miracle or that they’d win the lottery? Or were they just waiting for a President who would promise to “help” them pay their mortgages?
The worst is yet to come, says Howard Davidowitz. Sadly, everything this man says is true.
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February 19th, 2009 at 3:04 PM, Headless Mom Says:
Yes, yes, yes. Scary that people who couldn’t afford the homes they are in get a pass while those of us who got a real, normal mortgage that we could afford will get the shaft. That and the exec parachutes really piss me off.
February 19th, 2009 at 3:06 PM, Dana Says:
HM, I know how you feel. It’s so darn frustrating!