automaticable

As America heads towards a recession, or at the very least an economic slump, it is important to not only find solutions to turn the economy around, but also figure out how we got here. One of the main contributors to our current economic state is America’s irresponsibility in the housing market.

The blame for our current housing crisis can be placed all over, from big banks to small investment firms, and from our government all the way down to the individual home buyer. My negativity currently resides with the latter two, the government and the individual home buyer. I read earlier today in the Atlanta Journal Constitution (one of the larger newspapers in Atlanta) that both of the Democratic Presidential hopefuls have plans in place to help the individuals effected by the housing crisis. $30 billion were set aside to help bail out families whose houses are being foreclosed on. My questions is this: since when does our government set aside billions of dollars to help out Americans who simply made bad, uninformed mistakes?

This is where accountability comes into play. I am 100% against our government bailing out individuals who failed to realize that their sub-prime, adjustable rate mortgages could (gasp!) adjust above the level they could afford to pay. How can so many people be so ignorant? Did they all think a miracle had happened and all of a sudden they could afford their dream house on a combined $50k income? Here is a tip America: when something sounds too good to be true, it usually is.

If our solution to this problem is to simply bail out Americans who were too blinded by sub-prime loans to read the fine print, what is to stop this from happening again? Just as if you told your young child that every mistake they made was OK and that mommy would always be there to fix everything for them, America will lose all accountability and remain in their uninformed ways, sucking on the governmental teat. If there is no risk involved in a loan, there is no reason to worry about whether you can make the payments or not. And this is what Obama and Clinton are supporting: a program that promotes ignorance and diminishes all accountability in the American people. Mistakes will not be corrected as there is no risk of failure or punishment. This is not the America I want to live in, but a precedent is about to be set that may effect the decisions of Americans for generations.

Think before you make a decision as large as buying a home, and make sure you can afford your payments, no matter how high they may get. Instill accountability in not only your children, but the American people as a whole. Hand-holding is for toddlers, not grown US citizens.

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