US moves to avert economic meltdown

AP via Yahoo ^ | 1/22/08 | Terence Hunt

[jdsteel]

WASHINGTON - Jolted by global recession fears, the Federal Reserve slashed interest rates Tuesday, and President Bush and leaders of Congress joined in a rare show of cooperation in promising urgent action to pump up the economy with upwards of $150 billion in tax cuts and government spending.

[jdsteel]

OK, here's your chance to say you called it. Buy, Sell or Hold?!?

[Redgirl]

I’ll hold.

[glockmeister40]

I’m wondering about the relationship between the instability with bond insurers and the bond market in general. Bond funds, like Vanguard’s VBMXF (an intermediate term bond fund) have risen noticeably in the past month. It’s made up of about 10% government bonds and the rest are “high quality” commercial bonds. I’m wondering why this fund hasn’t dropped in value. Any thoughts?

[Freedom_Is_Not_Free]

Sell. Now.

The damage to the financial system that has been hiding behind the curtain for so long is only now just starting to poke through. It won’t be long before the real damage to the economy is readily apparent to most everyone. To people who think the stock market has just hit bottom. To people who think housing is about to rebound. To people who say, “now is the best time to buy”. To people who think there is no liquidity crisis, or that the financial losses to the lenders and investors is overblown. To people who think all of the recession talk is just smoke and mirrors by the Vast Left Wing Conspiracy.

My vote is sell now and buy back later for less.

[Rodm]

Drill! Drill Anwar! The price of oil will come down, people will start buying, energy prices will come down, the economy will start chugging. The stupid morons in congress won't let us add to the the supply of oil that would have broken opecs grip and kept energy price and inflation down. These morons in Washington are worried about saving three artic gophers. Now all the ding-dongs and girly-crats in Washington are running around like a brunch of headless chickens. Oh! what to do, what to do! All these morons know to do is spend more on pork and waste 30% more money than they did last year.

Go Mitt

[Skooz]

Oh, for crying out loud.

“Economic meltdown?”

Hyperbole outbreak is more like it. Just in time for the election.

[rbg81]

So....we are going to go $150B+ (probably more like $250B when its over) we don’t have just so Americans will feel confident to go out and buy more foreign products? Yeah, that will help.

Frankly, I’d feel better if we just had the recession and got it out of our system. The occasional recession used to be part of the normal business cycle, but I guess it has become unacceptable for anyone to feel pain or hardship anymore. Instead, the political class has become so desperate that we have to go on an insane spending binge to stave off the inevitable. This tells me that so much has been swept under the carpet, the foundation of the house is in jepoardy.

[Travis McGee]

"American consumers might benefit if lenders provided greater mortgage product alternatives to the traditional fixed-rate mortgage."

~~Alan Greenspan, February 22, 2004

"We're not about to go into a situation where (real estate) prices will go down. There is no evidence home prices are going to collapse."

~~Alan Greenspan, May 21, 2006

“The damage from the subprime market has been largely contained. Fortunately, the financial system and the economy are strong enough to weather this storm.”

Richard Fisher, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President, Apr 4, 2007

"All that said, given the fundamental factors in place that should support the demand for housing, we believe the effect of the troubles in the subprime sector on the broader housing market will likely be limited, and we do not expect significant spillovers from the subprime market to the rest of the economy or to the financial system."

~~Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, May 17, 2007

[Mr Ramsbotham]

We’ve got the Super Bowl in a couple of weeks, but for right now, it’s the Hyper Bole.

[EVO X]

I’m wondering why this fund hasn’t dropped in value. Any thoughts?

It might be a similar fund as VBTIX in post 44 in the following thread.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1956887/posts?page=44#44

[Freedom_Is_Not_Free]

I appreciate the government’s desire to keep growing the economy — it is kind of a win/win for everybody. But they don’t consider the potential harm they cause with their attempts to prop up the economy. When the pain finally comes, it always hurts more for longer than if they didn’t meddle.

[Son House]

Agree, the artificial propping of the economy only means they are trying to mask the pain. Long term holder here, though you could buy carbon credits from me when you get your $800.

[Freedom_Is_Not_Free]

That is an offer I ALMOST can’t refuse! Hmmm.... Let me think on that. LOL.

[Redcitizen]

I’m melting! I’m melting!

(Sorry, :) couldn’t resist)

[RetiredArmy]

President Bush and leaders of Congress joined in a rare show of cooperation in promising urgent action to pump up the economy with upwards of $150 billion in tax cuts and government spending.

ANY CHANCE, ANY CHANCE THAT THE MARXIST'S AND THE RINOcrat SOCIALIST JORGE BUSHWINSKI gets to GOVERNMENT SPEND, they never miss the chance.

[Sir Francis Dashwood]

I’m wondering about the relationship between the instability with bond insurers and the bond market in general. Bond funds, like Vanguard’s VBMXF (an intermediate term bond fund) have risen noticeably in the past month. It’s made up of about 10% government bonds and the rest are “high quality” commercial bonds. I’m wondering why this fund hasn’t dropped in value. Any thoughts?

Keating Five... subprime lending...

[Sir Francis Dashwood]

Subprime lending crisis? Keating Five S&L bailout scandal?

Enron, WorldCom... interesting stuff... McCain, Clintong... Chinese investors... Lippo group...

[Billthedrill]

Hyperbole outbreak is more like it. Just in time for the election.

No kidding. This particular "meltdown" has yet to show us two consecutive quarters of negative growth. What if they gave a recession and nobody came?

[jdsteel]

I’m wondering about the relationship between the instability with bond insurers and the bond market in general. Bond funds, like Vanguard’s VBMXF (an intermediate term bond fund) have risen noticeably in the past month. It’s made up of about 10% government bonds and the rest are “high quality” commercial bonds. I’m wondering why this fund hasn’t dropped in value. Any thoughts?

Flight to quality.

[Madame Dufarge]

Hyperbole outbreak is more like it. Just in time for the election.

Yup.

Any day now, the Democrats will be setting up soup kitchens and releasing photos of "hobo jungles" and The Dixie Chicks will release their new single, "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?"