Showing posts with label Bus Econ 2008 Subprime Crisis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bus Econ 2008 Subprime Crisis. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

My recent columns in The Tentacle on the economy by Kevin Dayhoff


My recent columns in The Tentacle on the economy by Kevin Dayhoff

May 13, 2009

On January 24, 2009 I posted “My recent columns in The Tentacle on the economy by Kevin Dayhoff.”

Recently several folks have asked that I update the list. Here you go:

May 6, 2009
Planned obedience…or else
Kevin E. Dayhoff
As of last week it appears that a marriage between Chrysler and Fiat SpA may eventually happen; this in spite of the few reports that surfaced recently that the marriage was off once Fiat realized the extent that Chrysler’s labor contracts were, how shall we say politely, less than helpful. Gee…

April 8, 2009
Thanks, but no thanks
Kevin E. Dayhoff
An opinion piece appeared in The Wall Street Journal last Sunday, relatively unnoticed except by economics geeks, citing the growing trend among banks that accepted Troubled Asset Relief Program –TARP – money who are begging the government to take the money back.

April 1, 2009
And Atlas Wept
Kevin E. Dayhoff
In a move that has given many pause, last Sunday the administration of President Barack Obama ventured boldly into the latest worrisome intrusion into the nation’s private sector by firing Rick Wagoner, General Motors’ chief executive officer.

March 18, 2009
Think Globally, Bank Locally
Kevin E. Dayhoff
If you are banking with any of the ginormous intergalactic financial institutions that are at the center of the current financial crisis, then you are part of the problem.

February 11, 2009
Political Heresy and Unvarnished Truth
Kevin E. Dayhoff
Yesterday, in 1899, the future 31st president of the United States, Herbert Clark Hoover, married Lou Henry in Monterey, CA. Happy anniversary, Mr. President.

February 4, 2009
When Stimulus Ain’t
Kevin E. Dayhoff
Last Wednesday, the House of Representatives passed its $819 billion version of the economic stimulus package by a vote of 244 to 188. Not a single Republican voted for the measure – for good reason.

And on January 24, 2009 I posted:

My recent columns in The Tentacle on the economy by Kevin Dayhoff: http://tinyurl.com/c9tqrh

October 3, 2008
Congress and The Rattlesnake – Part 3
Kevin E. Dayhoff
On May 13, 2008, Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama compared the current housing crisis in the U.S. to the Great Depression in a campaign stop in Missouri.


October 2, 2008
Congress and The Rattlesnake – Part 2
Kevin E. Dayhoff
For several weeks the nation and the world have been watching the financial news emanating from Washington and Wall Street with that “deer in headlights” look as everyone holds their breath in disbelief and worries another shoe will drop.


October 1, 2008
Congress and the Rattlesnake – Part 1
Kevin E. Dayhoff
In response to the increasing wrath of the American voter, the U.S. House of Representatives came to its senses on Monday and voted 288 to 205 to kill the rash and ill-conceived proposed $700 billion bailout of Wall Street.


November 5, 2008
It’s the Congress, Stupid!
Kevin E. Dayhoff
When historians look back on the 670-day, $2.5 billion 2008 presidential campaign, the observations, analysis, second-guessing, and finger pointing will fill volumes. In the end, it was once again, “the economy, stupid” that ruled the day.


November 19, 2008
Rewarding Bad Behavior
Kevin E. Dayhoff
Instead of tooling down the highway in the fast lane, two months after General Motors celebrated its 100th Birthday on September 16, it found itself huddled over at an intersection with fate, harassing passers-by with a tin pan in hand.


November 26, 2008
“The Eight Years War”
Kevin E. Dayhoff
At high noon on Monday, amid cries of alarm that this is the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, President-elect Barack Obama rolled out his all-star economic team and a call for an economic stimulus package that could cost as much as $1 trillion.

20090124 my recent columns in The Tentacle on the economy

Kevin Dayhoff
E-mail him at: kevindayhoff AT gmail DOT com
His columns appear in The Tentacle,
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20090513 SDOSM My recent columns in TT on the economy by KED
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Monday, March 9, 2009

New York Times – Sept. 30, 1999: Fannie Mae Eases Credit To Aid Mortgage Lending


The New York Times – September 30, 1999: Fannie Mae Eases Credit To Aid Mortgage Lending
Hat Tip: Analog

Fannie Mae Eases Credit To Aid Mortgage Lending

By STEVEN A. HOLMES

Published: September 30, 1999

In a move that could help increase home ownership rates among minorities and low-income consumers, the Fannie Mae Corporation is easing the credit requirements on loans that it will purchase from banks and other lenders.

[…]

Fannie Mae, the nation's biggest underwriter of home mortgages, has been under increasing pressure from the Clinton Administration to expand mortgage loans among low and moderate income people and felt pressure from stock holders to maintain its phenomenal growth in profits.

In addition, banks, thrift institutions and mortgage companies have been pressing Fannie Mae to help them make more loans to so-called subprime borrowers. These borrowers whose incomes, credit ratings and savings are not good enough to qualify for conventional loans, can only get loans from finance companies that charge much higher interest rates -- anywhere from three to four percentage points higher than conventional loans.

''Fannie Mae has expanded home ownership for millions of families in the 1990's by reducing down payment requirements,'' said Franklin D. Raines, Fannie Mae's chairman and chief executive officer. ''Yet there remain too many borrowers whose credit is just a notch below what our underwriting has required who have been relegated to paying significantly higher mortgage rates in the so-called subprime market.''

[…]

In moving, even tentatively, into this new area of lending, Fannie Mae is taking on significantly more risk, which may not pose any difficulties during flush economic times. But the government-subsidized corporation may run into trouble in an economic downturn, prompting a government rescue similar to that of the savings and loan industry in the 1980's.

''From the perspective of many people, including me, this is another thrift industry growing up around us,'' said Peter Wallison a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. ''If they fail, the government will have to step up and bail them out the way it stepped up and bailed out the thrift industry.''


Read the entire article here: Fannie Mae Eases Credit To Aid Mortgage Lending

19990930 NYT Fannie Mae Eases Credit To Aid Mortgage Lending

http://tinyurl.com/6p5d9j

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9c0de7db153ef933a0575ac0a96f958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2
Kevin Dayhoff www.kevindayhoff.net http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/
Kevin Dayhoff: www.westgov.net Westminster Maryland Online www.westminstermarylandonline.net http://kevindayhoffwestgov-net.blogspot.com/

Friday, February 27, 2009

NPR Belt Tightening Leads To Artistic Expansion

NPR Belt Tightening Leads To Artistic Expansion

February 27, 2009 NPR· Tough times can often be a springboard for creativity. When no one's job is safe, no one's house is secure and no one knows exactly what to do about it, artists get to work — and start pushing boundaries.

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Coming Up:
A visit to a place where the typewriter is alive and clacking, Monday on NPR's
Morning Edition.

20090227 NPR Belt Tightening Leads To Artistic Expansion
Kevin Dayhoff www.kevindayhoff.net http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/
Kevin Dayhoff: www.westgov.net Westminster Maryland Online www.westminstermarylandonline.net http://kevindayhoffwestgov-net.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

COLUMN ONE: Hit 'send,' then hit the door By Robin Abcarian February 23, 2009

LAT Column One Hit send then hit the door

From the Los Angeles Times

COLUMN ONE: Hit 'send,' then hit the door By Robin Abcarian February 23, 2009

Farewell e-mails become an art form in this age of pink slips. Some are funny, some are sad -- and some are just plain furious.

It was not the most eloquent subject line for a farewell e-mail to 5,000 co-workers: "So long, suckers! I'm out!"

But Jason Shugars worked at Google, whose off-center corporate culture is more forgiving than that of your average buttoned-down investment bank. In the rest of his goodbye, Shugars, a senior sales compliance specialist, reminisced about workplace moments that included putting cake down his pants at a sales conference, stealing a boss' $8,000 leather couch and singing "Hit Me Baby One More Time" in a miniskirt and braids.

[…]

That's a good question these days, now that thousands of people are finding themselves with pink slips and the need to let colleagues and contacts know they are moving on and -- perhaps more important for job seekers -- how they can be reached.

The farewell e-mail has suddenly become commonplace, a new art form in the electronic age. Yet like so many aspects of the Internet era -- how to unfriend on Facebook, how much to reveal on a personal blog -- the technology has gotten ahead of the etiquette. There are, quite simply, no rules.

[…]

In May, lawyer Shinyung Oh was let go from the San Francisco branch of the Paul Hastings law firm six days after losing a baby. The seven-year associate, who said she was told her previous, glowing evaluations may have been "overinflated," composed a blistering e-mail to the partners and fired it off to about 1,000 colleagues around the world.

She accused the firm's partners of "heartlessness" and of blaming her for failing to generate business "that should have been brought in by each of you."

"If this response seems particularly emotional," she wrote to the partners, "perhaps an associate's emotional vulnerability after a recent miscarriage is a factor you should consider the next time you fire or lay someone off. It shows startlingly poor judgment and management skills -- and cowardice -- on your parts."

Within an hour, Oh said, her e-mail was posted on a widely read legal affairs blog, then made its way into the mainstream media.

[…]

Will Schwalbe, coauthor of "Send: Why People E-mail So Badly and How to Do it Better," said the farewell e-mail was a reflection of two intersecting trends: the universality of e-mail and the confessional spirit of the times, which have resulted, as he put it, in "the democratization of the process."

In the pre-computer world, Schwalbe said, "Personnel wrote something -- a memo, Xeroxed -- generally, you didn't get to do it. They did it. But what had been an HR function is now a personal function." That, he said, leads to a different sort of message.


Read the entire article here: COLUMN ONE: Hit 'send,' then hit the door By Robin Abcarian February 23, 2009

20090223 LAT Column One Hit send then hit the door

http://www.latimes.com/news/la-na-farewell-emails23-2009feb23,0,4893360.story?track=rss

Kevin Dayhoff www.kevindayhoff.net http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/

Kevin Dayhoff: www.westgov.net Westminster Maryland Online www.westminstermarylandonline.net http://kevindayhoffwestgov-net.blogspot.com/

Monday, February 23, 2009

Governors Take Action To Address Foreclosure Crisis

Governors Take Action To Address Foreclosure Crisis

(Folks who have been looking for: Rick Santelli and the Rant of the Year YouTube and transcript #Dayhoff http://tinyurl.com/dd5cd4 )

NGA News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 22, 2009

Contact: Christopher Cashman, 202-345-8659

GOVERNORS TAKE ACTION TO ADDRESS FORECLOSURE CRISIS

NGA Center Report Highlights State Efforts to Mitigate and Prevent Foreclosures

WASHINGTON-The deepening foreclosure crisis and its impact on states was among the focal points today as the nation's governors convened for the 2009 National Governors Association (NGA) Winter Meeting in Washington, D.C., to discuss a host of critical challenges facing states.

During NGA's Economic Development and Commerce Committee session here, which emphasized state efforts to mitigate foreclosures, the NGA Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) unveiled two new resources for governors and state policymakers: a report, Emerging Trends: State Actions to Tackle the Foreclosure Crisis <http://www.nga.org/Files/pdf/0902FORECLOSUREREPORT.PDF>, which examines the larger economic trends influencing foreclosures and highlights state best practices in addressing the foreclosure problem, and a Web site<http://www.nga.org/center/foreclosures>, which will serve as a central repository for state actions related to foreclosure mitigation and prevention.

"Governors have been on the frontlines of developing policies and programs to help homeowners facing foreclosure and to keep more borrowers in their homes," said NGA Center Director John Thomasian. "Not only have states led the way in regulating mortgage brokers and lenders, but they also have been laying the groundwork for rebuilding the nation's housing market."

Since 2006, when residential foreclosures began dramatically increasing, states have established numerous programs and resources to assist borrowers and tightened rules governing mortgage brokers and lenders. In 2008 alone, governors in 33 states signed 70 pieces of legislation to combat the rise in foreclosures. Nearly all states have adopted new regulations to improve oversight of the mortgage lending industry.

As the report details, state actions related to foreclosure have focused on three key areas:

· Mitigation - To slow the number of homes that fall into foreclosure, states have stepped up efforts to reach out to at-risk borrowers, connect borrowers with counseling and legal assistance, negotiate agreements with loan servicers to streamline modifications and improve the foreclosure process.

· Stabilization - As the number of foreclosures rises, so does the number of vacant and abandoned homes, which can attract crime and decrease property values. States are working to stabilize neighborhoods with multiple vacant and abandoned properties by streamlining property acquisition; ensuring properties are located quickly and maintained properly; creating land banks; and designing programs to market foreclosed property to new, responsible homeowners.

· Prevention -To protect borrowers from future housing crises and prepare for better times, states are enacting laws to regulate mortgage brokers, increase transparency and disclosure during the loan origination process, prevent predatory practices and improve financial education among consumers.

In addition to cataloguing state actions to address foreclosures, the NGA Center's interactive Web site will provide the latest information on state foreclosure programs and legislation as well as links to all NGA Center publications covering foreclosures and related issues.

For more information on state actions to address foreclosures, please visit http://www.nga.org/center/foreclosures.

###

Founded in 1908, the National Governors Association (NGA) is the collective voice of the nation's governors and one of Washington, D.C.'s most respected public policy organizations. Its members are the governors of the 50 states, three territories and two commonwealths. NGA provides governors and their senior staff members with services that range from representing states on Capitol Hill and before the Administration on key federal issues to developing and implementing innovative solutions to public policy challenges through the NGA Center for Best Practices.

For more information, visit http://www.nga.org/<http://www.nga.org/>.

20090222 Governors Take Action To Address Foreclosure Crisis
Kevin Dayhoff www.kevindayhoff.net http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/
Kevin Dayhoff: www.westgov.net Westminster Maryland Online www.westminstermarylandonline.net http://kevindayhoffwestgov-net.blogspot.com/

Thursday, February 5, 2009

This week in The Tentacle

This week in The Tentacle

Thursday, February 5, 2009

An Overdue Alternative
Tony Soltero
With our economy in dire straits, President Barack Obama has asked Congress to pass an economic stimulus bill to stave off a massive depression. There are many items in this bill to like – and some not to like, but there is one item that should be taking precedence over all others, and it's nowhere near being adequately addressed in this proposal, whatever shape it eventually takes.

From Grease to Life’s Challenges
Patricia A. Kelly
Tuesday night at the Hippodrome, I became 12 again, ever so briefly, doing the Twist in my seat and singing along with “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.” Why is it that silly song lyrics you learned at that age stay in your head forever, but you can’t remember why you just walked into the laundry room?

WTE Derangement
Norman M. Covert
Here’s a shout-out to Commissioner Kai J. Hagen, who needs a kind word from someone, anyone. His “noogies” have been few since objecting to the $323 million Waste-to-Energy (WTE) plant proposed for Frederick County. Mr. Hagen should declare victory and admit he was “for it” before he was against it.



Wednesday, February 4, 2009
When Stimulus Ain’t
Kevin E. Dayhoff
Last Wednesday, the House of Representatives passed its $819 billion version of the economic stimulus package by a vote of 244 to 188. Not a single Republican voted for the measure – for good reason.

Up The River…Part 1
Tom McLaughlin
Sibu, Sarawak, East Malaysia – Christine and I left Kuching via the Sarawak River in the continuing monsoon for our trip up the Rajang River. Rains have poured from the clouds since early December and would follow us into the interior.



Tuesday, February 3, 2009
"Let us sit upon the ground – "
Roy Meachum
As readers know when faced with startling turns in life, I turn to Shakespeare. The column's title is taken from "Richard II" and is part of a speech in the third act:

Dumbing Down Mathematics – Part III
Nick Diaz
Across the country, the way mathematics is taught in the classroom and in textbooks has been changing notably in the past 20 years. Classrooms are often organized in small groups where students ask each other questions and the teacher is discouraged from providing information. Students may even take tests in groups, if they have tests at all.



Monday, February 2, 2009
When the “Have Nots” Rule
Steven R. Berryman
With 40 percent of America having now achieved entitlement-class status, it stands to reason that the burden of supporting our welfare country is born by the remaining 60 percent of the citizens.

Disastrous Global Warming Bill
Farrell Keough
We have a black cat which is a walking bad hair day. I have determined her given name, Elvis, (yes, the animal is female) does not fit her, hence I have renamed her Spawn of Satan.



Friday, January 30, 2009
People Conforming
Roy Meachum
As some readers recall, for the past several years I have worked on a book, a collection of memories from my colorful past. Recently I have written on the Eisenhower era. After two hitches in the Army, I started my civilian career on the general's first inauguration day. I was already married with child; future attorney Thomas Moore Meachum born in 1951.

Super Sunday
Joe Charlebois
This Sunday, our nation and hundreds of millions of people worldwide will sit down and watch what is arguably the biggest single sporting event in the world. This Sunday the 43rd edition of the National Football League's Super Bowl will be held in Tampa, Florida.



Thursday, January 29, 2009
Living Like The Rest of Us
Joan McIntyre
I caught the Board of County Commissioners meeting that was held on Tuesday. Ron Hart, the county manager, was singing the commissioners’ praises for saving the county $12,000 to $15,000 by not filling their receptionist position.

Rebuilding A Party
Chris Cavey
If the Republican Party was a person and not an entity, it would be in the hospital – condition listed as serious, awaiting a transplant and full recovery would be expected only after long periods of physical therapy.

Reconstruction and the Old Plantation
Norman M. Covert
What a week we experienced (drool, tingle, shudder). On reflection I realize that after 128 years, the Second Period of Reconstruction is upon us. A sea of organizers, charlatans, tax cheats, and political insiders from Chicago, New York, and Arkansas, have taken charge of the nation’s government.



Wednesday, January 28, 2009
The Sun Also Sets – Part 2
John W. Ashbury
[The Baltimore Sun’s decision to cease home delivery – and even newsstand sales west of the metropolitan area, brought back countless memories of my days as a reporter and editor there in an age that has passed this gray lady by. We continue…] (See yesterday’s Part 1)

The 2009 Intergenerational Theft Act
Kevin E. Dayhoff
As you read this column Congress is attempting to put the finishing touches on an $825 billion economic stimulus package – otherwise known as the 2009 Intergenerational Theft Act.

Indonesia and the Inauguration
Tom McLaughlin
Bali, Indonesia – Four factors influenced my desire to forego watching the inauguration of President Barack Obama with fellow Americans here in Kuta Beach. I did not seek out places that Americans congregate, nor the American Consulate.



Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Setting Baltimore Sun
Roy Meachum
You've heard and read about the calamitous state of America's newspaper industry; it has been firmly fixed on the availability of numerous competitive news sources on the cable channels. Nobody dares to broach the possibility the venerable medium may have done itself in.

The Sun Also Sets – Part 1
John W. Ashbury
After starting a career in journalism with The Frederick News-Post, way back in 1959, it wasn’t hard to jump 50 miles to the east and settle in as a police reporter at the venerable Sun in Baltimore. It was an introduction to a newsroom once populated by such as H. L. Mencken and still the bastion of men long respected as reporters, editors and columnists.

Raise Your Voices…
Farrell Keough
A new president and a new session for the Maryland Legislature – what more could a columnist ask for? Uh… substance?

20090205 SDOSM This week in The Tentacle
Kevin Dayhoff www.kevindayhoff.net http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/
Kevin Dayhoff: www.westgov.net Westminster Maryland Online www.westminstermarylandonline.net http://kevindayhoffwestgov-net.blogspot.com/