Half-n-Half

First let me jog your memory, just in case you have forgotten, about the $700 billion dollars that Congress approved to supposedly shore up banks that held “questionable” mortgages. Remember that is $700 billion of yours and mine hard earned tax dollars the U.S. Government has sucked from us. Of course the pretense of this “bail-out” bill was to help people that were delinquent on their mortgage payments and help prevent them from losing their homes. Well, the first half of that money is gone under the George W. Bush administration. It was given to banks who now, when asked what they did with the money, tell Congress “it’s none your damn business what we did with it”, or our accounting practices don’t facilitate us to be able to separate the money you gave us from the rest of our finances so we really can’t say what we did with it.

Keep in mind the banks that are recipients of the lion’s share of this money are not your local bank around the corner. These are multi-billion dollar investment banks and the large banks like Bank of America, Wachovia (now merged with Wells Fargo Bank), Citi Bank, etc. These are the same banks that charge you 20-30 percent on your credit card balance, $20-$50 per month late payment fee if your payment is one second after midnight posting, and 20-50% over limit fee if you go one cent over your credit limit. Just a side note, I thought a limit meant that was it, no more, all you have? If you have a credit “limit” then how can you go over it? Even though these aholes aren’t disclosing what they are doing with the money, we do know they are using it to buy other banks (see how many bank buy-outs have taken place since the money was released), they are using it to continue to lavish their executives with golden parachutes absurd bonuses, and extravagant lifestyles. We also know that none or little of this money has been used for the intended purpose it was originally presented to the American people for; to help with distressed home mortgages. Just take a look at the statistics on how foreclosures have risen since the release of the first half of the money.

Now that other industries have seen how easy it is to get free money from the Government using this bank bail-out as a model, they are lining up for their share. Hell, even ole Larry Flint of Hustler magazine and Joe Francis of Girls Gone Wild has allied to ask for money. Yea, that’s right; they say pornography sales are down 40% and America needs a good healthy porn industry to maintain our mental health. Of course if AIG can get $85 billion dollars and immediately have lavish extravaganzas at 5 star resorts for their executives then it’s no wonder that ole Larry and Joe feel they are entitled too. When AIG was asked what they did with the money their response to Congress was nonya, as in none of ya damn business. At least if they give Larry and Joe our tax dollars we know what they will do with them.

It never ceases to amazement how Democrats and Republicans can never seem to work together for the betterment of our Country and the American people. However, when it comes to fleecing the taxpayers out of money, lining their own pockets and those of their cronies they can work together like a finely tuned symphony orchestra. This bail-out fiasco is the biggest scam that has ever been perpetuated upon the American public. The Bush-Obama team is what brings us to the half-n-half situation. From what has transpired so far it is clear that George W. Bush needed to pay off his Wall Street buddies before leaving office. He got his half of the $700 billion and we know what has happened to it. Now, as quick as Obama is sworn in next Tuesday he is going to get the other half. Nobody will ever convince me that this wasn’t planned from the beginning and the Bush-Obama team knew exactly what they were doing and going to do. It was a conspiracy from the beginning. In my opinion the entire Presidential election was a conspiracy. If you think I am wrong, just take a look at the Governor of Illinois and him taking bids on Obama’s vacant Senate seat. The Rod Blagojevich situation is politics at its best. Normally we don’t see these practices because they take place in back allies, ante rooms and under the table. In the Blagojevich situation he was so brazen he didn’t even care that the public saw the raw face of how political deals are done. If you think this is an isolated incident, my friends you are wrong. This type of wrangling is the norm, not the exception and if you really think about it the Bush-Obama team has done the same thing to us, just on a grander scale and with, although very little, a little more finesses. What remains to be seen is just how much of a team player Obama is going to be. I won’t judge him before he acts, but chances are he will follow through and the second half of that $700 billion will disappear just as quickly as the first half did. This being the case; Bush will be happy, Obama will be happy, the bankers will be rich and happy and us, the American taxpayer, will be left holding the bag. Ain’t our Government a wonderful thing? The only hope is, and it is a slim hope, Congress will actually grow a set and step up to demand return of the wasted $350 billion and not release the second half of this money. The reason this won’t happen is because they have pockets to line and political debits to repay just like Bush and Obama.