I read it, I said it, I stole your momma's credit

Anyone guess the movie?




And we're moving on:

Disclaimer: I'm feeling a little preachy this morning. If you don't want to read a rant about our current financial times, I suggest you just skip this one.

I read the Clark Howard piece that I linked to yesterday, and would encourage you to do the same if you want a dumbed-down, super-brief summary of what happened over the last few months.

I want to call attention to one of the minor points that is made in the story (and the one following it as well): this is not a "Bush" problem.

With all the flurry of various political campaigns going on day in and day out, both candidates were quick on the draw, blaming this party and that. Obama still seems to be on his "don't vote for 4 more years of Bush - they got us in this jam" mantra, but do not be fooled.

It takes years for financial policies, passed by our local, state and national government, to take affect. To blame the current state of Wall Street and the real estate market on any 1 term in office is not only unfair, it's wrong.

Now, I know in the past I haven't gotten too far into the political debate. But it's hitting our wallets now, and it's getting a bit personal. The government has either loaned, or made available, upwards of $280 billion dollars. And where they getting the cash? Mostly, from you. And me. And the rest of the American people.

Do I think the government should bailout these companies? It's a toss-up, simply because on one hand, the companies shouldn't have gotten themselves into this pickle in the first place. On the other hand, the companies are now so big that having them go down in flames would probably cause a HUGE wave of financial turbulence across the globe. It's a no win situation.

Indymac
Washington Mutual
Freddie
Fanny
AIG
Bear Stearns
Merrill Lynch
HBOS
Lehman Brothers

Who is next?