Comments on: The Truth About the Citigroup Fallout…

By: Chiefoo

Chiefoo — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 18:22:56 +0000

Bailout, bailout, bailout. I don’t have $24,000. (cost of all the bailouts per American) Oh, my children are cosigners. My city is laying me off, my state is facing billions in budget shortfalls, The transit system wants to tax my cars, $200. TO $400. for buses and subways I don’t use because the riders can’t afford the fare increase!! The bailouts have our signatures on the dotted line. I don’t remember signing, do you?

By: mark

mark — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 15:02:25 +0000

Citi is one of the most reprehensible financial institutions ever to darken the planet and should be allowed to perish, the common citizen does not want them bailed-out only a handful of filthy politicians do, the U.S.A. may be a lot of things but a democracy is not one of them

By: Barb

Barb — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 13:56:54 +0000

Absolutely NOT, in other words a definite NO!

In light of the present financial crisis, it is interesting to read what Thomas Jefferson said in 1802:

‘I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties

than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to

control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by
deflation,
the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will
deprive
the people of all property until their children wake-up homeless on the
continent their fathers conquered .’

And one more quote from Thomas Jefferson:

I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the
government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of
taking care of them.

By: A Small Business Person

A Small Business Person — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 13:19:33 +0000

Citigroup, which Robert pointed out, sponsored the new bankruptcy bill and is part of the credit card industry that each year takes in 200 billion dollars in interest alone. This is on top of the fee that each business establishment has to pay for accepting the cards. This amount of money would show up on a bar chart if included in the U.S. budget which is around one trillion dollars.

There was case in the 1960s when California challenged a fee from one of these companies as being illegal in California. This case went to the Supreme Court which sided with the credit card companies’ argument that they could not manage state-by-state. With this case these companies moved to Nevada, Kansas, Rhode Island, and Virginia where there are no limits to what they can charge. In most states there are usury laws. This ruling in effect created a monopoly and invalidated those usury laws.

Certainly with modern day software including relational databases such as Oracle and modern high speed computers this ruling no longer applies. These cards could be managed at the street level let alone state level. The government has a responsibility to ensure competition. Either this ruling should be rechallenged or an alternative created to ensure competition and not bailouts for these banks.

By: Bonnie

Bonnie — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 02:23:19 +0000

These banks extended credit to people who could not afford to pay the money back. Now they want the government to bail them out of the financial crisis they created. The credit-worthy, law-abiding, tax-paying citizens of this country will foot the bill.
Maybe what this country needs is a giant computer crash that dumps all the data connected to the financial industry (including the auto industry: GMAC, Ford Motor Credit, etc.) forcing us to start from scratch…like “do overs” when we were kids playing marbles.

By: Kathy McCulloch

Kathy McCulloch — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 01:10:54 +0000

We have a Citi credit card, Last week they called to tell us that they were going to raise our interest rate from 6% to 24% !!!!!???!!!!! (we had the option to opt out, which we did.) Now this week I hear that they get a bail out? What’s wrong with this picture?

By: Steve Connor

Steve Connor — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 23:21:19 +0000

What people dont realize is that it is going to take years, maybe a decade or more to generate enough tax revenue to pay for all these bailouts. Not only do we have to deal with the inflation that will result from printing money, but also from the borrowing and interest the Feds will have to payout.

There is no way that the economy is going to grow fast enough to pay this back quickly. This is a massive amount of money that dwarfs what happened in the late 70’s and early 80’s.

If we did nothing, the effect would have been more immediate, but the recovery would be quicker and i believe lasting.

Politicians dont want to make hard choices because they will get kicked out of office, not to mention reduce the need for government in the first place. Its all about socialism and that is where we are headed. The power and money will be in the hands of government and large corporate entities. Small independent business owners will go the way of the dinosaurs.

By: Debbie

Debbie — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 22:02:58 +0000

This is riduculous! Why are we bailing out these predatory lenders! I work in mortgage lending and work for a company that never practiced any of these subprime loans. But some idiot somewhere got this crazy idea to put everyone – including the people that cannot and I mean obviously cannot afford a mortgage (notice I didn’t say house) and we, the tax payers, are bailing these idiots out! I am so sick of this. I never know when I go into work if I am going to keep my job or not and these guys are getting money like it is water. Enough already. Oh by the way, if given the chance to make the same loans that got us into this mess in the first place, all of these financial entities will do the same thing all over again?? When does the madness stop?

By: mike

mike — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 22:00:40 +0000

We contionue to give money to the same people that created the situation until we replace all the failed businees “leader”& congrress people we will not have longterm improvement. The people that created the housing, dirivitives, stock market, etc schemes have built houses of cards that had to fall. What is the diffference between Fannie, Freedie, Enron and World Com, the leaders were all cut from the same cloth. get rid of Paulson because he is to cloe to the situation and lets begin again,

By: Fred H. Fairhope

Fred H. Fairhope — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 15:49:10 +0000

Let me make sure I understand this. I am underemployed due to a lay off. My Citigroup Visa is behind and I am getting collection calls. We are bailing out Citigroup so they can continue to call me. Something just doesn’t seem right here. Who calls them when they are late?

By: FL4MC

FL4MC — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 15:05:57 +0000

As a blue collar worker that has not made as much as 50,000 a yr. in my lifetime. I think Capitalism is the best form of goverment in this world, I just wish our goverment would understand how it is suppose to work, most of know…….

By: Allison

Allison — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 14:35:52 +0000

How are these companies rewarded for failing?

Bonuses are to equal peformance. These CEOs who failed should be personally responsible and be penalized in their paycheck. Maybe they would have tried a little harder. They would be begging us to let them resign without pay if they had to be responsible for their actions.

By: A retired worker

A retired worker — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 13:45:56 +0000

Why are all of our tax dollars going to these banks? We have reached a pinnacle in the country in which there is no free money to grow. Seems like the consumer is the one who should benefit.

Three options:

First just reduce the tax rate by 50% over two years – that is 700 billion.

Second reduce the tax rate by 25% and index home mortgages by 0.75, refinance the loans at 6% and the government buy the 25%.

Third reduce the tax rate by 10% and index mortgages as in option two pus index the credit card debt by 0.75 and allow that to be taken as a tax deduction for four years. Credit card account has to be cancelled. Let the bank eat the 25% and issue a new credit card using the Postal Service at 9% and make 5% principle payback. Allow competition by other companies.

By: Robert Patterson

Robert Patterson — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 13:34:50 +0000

How dare the government bail out Citi Bank -Citigroup.

Citigroup sponsored this new bankruptcy bill that President Bush signed into law to protect their 25 percent interest rate credit cards.

Citigroup is trying to avoid the very bankruptcy laws it put into effect for the rest of us.

If it is good enough for us it is good enough for them.

By: gaurav parakh

gaurav parakh — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 11:28:50 +0000

We can not always capitalize the profit for wall streets and socialize the losses for Main Street. All failing companies should restructure for the 21st century global market by going for chapter 11 stage. Chapter 11 stage is not chapter 7 stage.

Chapter 11 stages was made by law makers for the same purpose that companies which are in bad shape can restructure themselves from all corners. Able to renegotiate the contracts, change the management, and get tax exhumations. Today all these industries are not competitive, chapter 11 will help these companies to reduce and renegotiate the cost of labor, real state cost, legacy cost, healthcare cost, retirement cost, ideal worker cost, access labor cost etc.

How many industry we can bailout Real state Industry, Financial industry, Auto Industry, Steal Industry, Timber Industry etc. We should see the long-term approach towards all these industries rather than short-term bailout approach.

Let’s call for a new world Industrial approach. Lean, smart and forward looking approach. Devil is in the details. We should focus on stake holder wealth creation rather than short term share holder gain.

By: Marilyn

Marilyn — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 15:37:27 +0000

Where does the government get all this money to bail out every Tom, Dick and Harry? Is the Denver mint working overtime or is there a grove of trees somewhere growing it? Come on, guys – the dollar is almost worthless now – it will be more worthless if we just keep printing money.