FORECLOSURE FOLLY GETS DOWN AND DIRTY

Courts, borrowers and lawyers are in for a mucky dip in the MUD. And the only ones who will make a clean get away are the lawyers. The Foreclosure Folly mess is ripe for lawyerly enrichment to the max.

A number of large lenders have suspended foreclosure proceedings in 25 states, and that number is growing. It seems like the lenders have hired "Robo Signers" to execute foreclosure paperwork, they were so anxious to get their hands on your house. Now wouldn't you think that the banks would have enough sense to hire people who actually know what a Promissory Note is, or what a Mortgagee is, or what a Notary is? But no, the banks hired construction workers, food service workers, hospitality service workers, and many others who had zero, zippo experience in the financial industry. They hired these people to "Robo" sign documents to facilitate foreclosure proceedings against homeowners, gave them little or no training and put them behind a desk with the POWER OF KEEPING A ROOF OVER YOUR HEAD IN THEIR HANDS.

There has been sworn testimony by some of the "Robo" signers that they signed many thousands of documents per month, submitting affidavits that confirmed the accuracy of the information in those documents, but that they had in fact not verified any of the information. Basically their job was lickety split and full speed ahead with foreclosures.

Now for a look at the bigger picture. What were bank regulators doing while mischief and mayhem were in full swing? And while the biggest lenders in the U. S. routinely filed false foreclosure documents in courthouses throughout the country? Well, in the case of one large bank it turns out that the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corp) was running the scam. This explains why the banking industry got away with such grievous misbehaviour for so long. The government was doing it too, even though the government was charged with preventing just such a romp in the pigpen sludge.

For years the leaders of the Federal Reserve have been assuring the public that there were on site examiners/regulators at all of the country's largest banks. But the regulators did nothing to stop the abuse. Were they clueless? Or did they allow it to go on to keep the foreclosure slaughter house open?

And to think Obama/Congress just gave the banking regulators, including the FDIC, even more authority under the Dodd-Frank Financial Reform Act. Seems like the more the government fails, the more power they grab. And the more power they grab, the bigger the failure.

The bottom line? The housing market will crash and burn even worse than it already has. Market values of homes? Watch for the prices to sink even lower as soon as all the forestalled foreclosures flood the market all at the same time.

Thanks, Washington, for taking such good care of an industry you bailed out and own part of.

Such a touchy, feely, hopey and changey job you have done at the expense of Americans everywhere, and Obama said he was going to clean up Washington.

RECESSION IS OVER! CAN'T YOU TELL?

Did you see the "What Have They Been Smoking" headline today? "The Recession Is Over." That's what a panel of experts charged with determining these things announced. They say the "current recession ended in June 2009."

WOW, ARE YOU FEELING BETTER NOW?

Or are you one of the millions of Americans looking for a job, or worried about losing your job? Have you had your hours or wages cut? Do you have that squeeze in the pit of your stomach because things are so insecure?

Reported unemployment stubbornly remains at 9.6%, but the real jobless rate is 17.5% as reported by CNBC. If you are not part of this statistic today, you could be tomorrow.

Maybe you are one of the 2.6 millions Americans who have lost their home to foreclosure, or maybe your home is worth 30-50% less than you paid for it, or maybe you are behind in your mortgage payments like one in four Americans are? Or maybe you live in a neighborhood blighted by abandoned homes and therefore you can't sell yours?

Or maybe you have been forced to default on consumer debt and have filed for bankruptcy. A record number of bankruptcies are being filed every month.

Or you might be struggling to feed your kids, keep a roof over their heads, keep them healthy and educated, all while your purchasing power is in the tank and sinking fast.

These statistics are appalling, and economists are projecting that unemployment will not come down significantly anytime soon, and there will be record foreclosures for at least another 2 years.

We have the highest POVERTY RATE (43.6 million Americans living on wages below $22,000 a year) since the only other recession that lasted as long as this one has. That one was called THE GREAT DEPRESSION.

So while the hallucinating panel members can bend their statistics to make it appear "the recession is over," out here in the real world it sure doesn't feel like it.

This recession won't be over until our government gets its financial house in order, and that won't happen until the current crop of Washington Elites is FIRED. Until then we have to hang together and help each other as much as we can. As Americans we are all in this together.