Trumps: White Angry Middleclass

[jp1]

That yield isn't all that bad in the current environment. Ten year treasuries, for instance, are yielding about 1.76% at the moment

It's true that treasury rates are that low but if the debts that were bought with QE had higher rates than it's irrelevant to my point.

[Williamsmith]

That yield isn't all that bad in the current environment. Ten year treasuries, for instance, are yielding about 1.76% at the moment.

QE, for all it's faults, was instituted for monetary reasons when the Fed ran out of rate-setting ammunition.

And I'm not saying the banks are completely blameless. I'm saying the crisis was a perfect storm of bad decisions by government, the financial industry and the great American public. Scapegoating one particular group adds nothing to an understanding of what happened. No villains are required, unless you've got a political agenda to sell.

Who was it who said "Never attribute to malice what is adequately explained by stupidity"?

You make Theft By Deception sound very innocent. If someone sold you a Rolex watch but you found out later it was a counterfeit .......would that be theft?

[LDAHL]

It's true that treasury rates are that low but if the debts that were bought with QE had higher rates than it's irrelevant to my point.

Like any other securities transaction, past prices and yields are irrelevant to what a willing buyer pays a willing seller. It was my understanding that the Fed purchased securities at market. Higher rate paper would have been sold to the Fed at a discount. Whoever chose to sell securities to the Fed got the market value on that particular day, realizing a gain or loss based on what they originally paid. The intention was to generate liquidity in the economy, not to either help or hurt bankers or "Wall Street". Basically, it was one step up from simply printing money.

[LDAHL]

You make Theft By Deception sound very innocent. If someone sold you a Rolex watch but you found out later it was a counterfeit .......would that be theft?

Not innocent, but part of a larger situation. People lied about income and assets to get mortgages to buy houses they couldn't afford. Mortgage originators didn't apply due diligence in making the loans. Government agencies pushed banks to make loans to "underserved" borrowers. Banks packaged loans into securities, and government agencies guaranteed them and investors bought them, all with inadequate due diligence. Then the underlying asset, housing, failed to appreciate in price quickly enough to keep the process going. It's hard for me to see dastardly villains and innocent victims here.

If someone offers to sell you a Rolex for ten bucks, and it turns out to be a Rolecks when you buy it without looking it over, are you completely blameless?

[jp1]

Like any other securities transaction, past prices and yields are irrelevant to what a willing buyer pays a willing seller. It was my understanding that the Fed purchased securities at market. Higher rate paper would have been sold to the Fed at a discount. Whoever chose to sell securities to the Fed got the market value on that particular day, realizing a gain or loss based on what they originally paid. The intention was to generate liquidity in the economy, not to either help or hurt bankers or "Wall Street". Basically, it was one step up from simply printing money.

I guess I haven't managed to make myself clear. What I want to know is how much of the debt the fed bought from the banks has gone into default. Was it a negligible amount, half, two thirds, how much. That amount matters because it's appalling to think about trillions of dollars being printed to purchase worhthless "assets" from the banks at full face value. And frankly, absent any contrary proof, it seems reasonable to assume that it was a majority of that debt.

We'll probably never know because the fed does not operate with transparency, as evidenced by the extreme reaction whenever anyone, such as Ron Paul, suggests that they should be audited.

[Williamsmith]

The angry white middleclass claimed another victory tonight in South Carolina. It looks good for Trump in Nevada. Cruz took it on the chin.....it's all downhill from here. Tomorrow is the Daytona 500. Lots of celebrating going on at Bubbas house tomorrow.

[Williamsmith]

Well Mr. Trump took it to the house in Nevada getting somewhere in the mid forty percent of the vote. That's a thumping of Cruz and Rubio. It is fitting that the state most known for its debauchery by the religious right handed Cruz his latest humbling defeat.

Really the angry white middleclass should thank Cruz for the newest Trump victory. For all the talk of purity, consistency and honesty, his campaign has failed to live up to its promises. And his followers are the Christian Right.......they are the least forgiving people in the world when it comes to mistakes.

No surprise, Cruz doesnt have a friend in the government either. They all spurned him early in his career and he has lashed out at them and his own anger turns people off. It does not mix well with his holier than thou attitude. So on to the next rout. Trump is nearly unstoppable at this point.

Another Budweiser please.

[Ultralight]

Trump! Trump! Trump!

[ctg492]

Only 9 more months of this................

[LDAHL]

Mr. Trump seems to have done surprisingly well with Latino voters, even running against two Latino opponents. It's nice to see at least one party not enslaved by identity politics.

Perhaps Williamsmith's "angry white middleclass" narrative is too narrow.