Not sure who here wants to let the wall street component off the hook, but there is a total lack of holding dumb (or fraudulent) borrowers to account too. That was my point.
And the lending component became totally estranged from the packaging of the credit default swaps and the other esoteric instruments packaged by banks.
Simply trying to get some proportion in the debate. The media acts like folks who BORROW FOUR HUNDRED THOUSAND and allowed to live in a huge house were somehow “held up” — it makes no sense.
There are an army of foreclosure lawyers going after the failed borrowers, and lots of empty homes. In some states, those folks are still on the hook for the money the bank can't get from the sale of the house. The failed borrowers are not having a fun time. You can find a number of articles on www.nakedcapitalism.com about folks who were robbed of their homes by the banks.
On the other side, we have seen sworn testimony about 10s of thousands of perjured documents by the banks. And yet, no banker has lost his house or been otherwise penalized.
Until we see a lot of perp walks, there isn't enough emphasis on the crime of the bankers.
I’m jumping into the middle of the conversation you have been having here, so not directly related to a specific post. Just raising a point.
I’ve a few friends that have walked from their home loans. Not one of them can be characterized as getting a loan they could not afford. They had good steady jobs with loan amounts that did not have them over their heads.
They lost their good paying jobs and income. All but one had savings that could have carried them for awhile in the house. It became a business decision for them to walk.
They looked a house that was worth half what they owed. Another house that was just as nice was available for rent at less than half what their mortgage payment was. Why not walk? Why shouldn’t they?