So, how will America vote now?

Chris2685

Looks like confidence in the markets has dived since the announcement... They dive if they do, they dive if they don't lol.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7647662.stm

Realy

Chris2685 wrote: »

Looks like confidence in the markets has dived since the announcement... They dive if they do, they dive if they don't lol.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7647662.stm

Until it is passed and seen to be making a difference they will be up and down like a frog on a trampoline.

baby_boomer

George Soros has just slammed the rescue deal.

"The plan is ill-conceived or not conceived at all."

He thinks that taxpayers will end up paying too much for bad debt and that it would have been preferable for some institutions to fail. Then private capital could have been used to refinance the banks, with the US Treasury buying shares in the banks if there wasn't enough - thereby allowing taxpayers to share in any future gains from the bail-out.

This is the view I've come round to over the last week.

Generali

baby_boomer wrote: »

George Soros has just slammed the rescue deal.

"The plan is ill-conceived or not conceived at all."

He thinks that taxpayers will end up paying too much for bad debt and that it would have been preferable for some institutions to fail. Then private capital could have been used to refinance the banks, with the US Treasury buying shares in the banks if there wasn't enough - thereby allowing taxpayers to share in any future gains from the bail-out.

This is the view I've come round to over the last week.

It is very hard to see what the US taxpayer gets for the $1,000,000,000,000 or so that they'll have committed to be spent on propping up defunct banks by the end of the week.

You could start a new banking system for that sort of money and let the current one go to the wall.

PS On the computer thing, I got a ZX81 in 1982. I used to write games for it.

beaujolais-nouveau

Realy wrote: »

I think you misread it.

"Since 2007, the banks have had to value their mortgage-related assets at current market prices,"
That as been the write downs.

You need to read further, I suggest.

Generali

beaujolais-nouveau wrote: »

You need to read further, I suggest.

What have the write downs been if not the value of mortgages and mortgage backed assets on banks' books please?

penguine

baby_boomer wrote: »

George Soros has just slammed the rescue deal.

"The plan is ill-conceived or not conceived at all."

He thinks that taxpayers will end up paying too much for bad debt and that it would have been preferable for some institutions to fail. Then private capital could have been used to refinance the banks, with the US Treasury buying shares in the banks if there wasn't enough - thereby allowing taxpayers to share in any future gains from the bail-out.

This is the view I've come round to over the last week.

I have written to my Rep Jim McDermott (Democrat, voted yes on the 1st version of the bill) arguing for something along these lines. I don't pay tax in the US anymore (and not planning to move back so not likely to again) and I still don't like the idea of the bailout as originally conceived.

I've voted for McDermott for the past 16 years, but might give my vote to someone else next time.

Generali

penguine wrote: »

I don't pay tax in the US anymore

I was under the impression that all US citizens have to pay US tax. Is there a time limit or something?

penguine

Generali wrote: »

I was under the impression that all US citizens have to pay US tax. Is there a time limit or something?

If you're living abroad you have to be earning more than the equivalent of $60k per year. Not a worry for me...

mr_magoo_5

This $700B is no more than a bail out of the buddies on Wall Street, their using fear to sell the deal. From 3 pages it has gone to over 400 pages in days.
Any legal person will tell you 400 pages of law needs to be looked over very carefully because loopholes will be exploited.
Using fear to get this passed is wrong, the world didn’t end these last few days and I don’t expect it to end anytime soon either. Not many in Main Street really believes this is going to solve the mess their in.
The big one is the derivatives bubble now at approx $700 Trillion. Warren Buffett warned about this several months ago. If that goes, well, nothing could be ruled out.

*********************************************************
I tried to talk my wife into buying a case of beer for £10.00.
Instead, she bought a jar of Oil of Ulay for £7.00.
I told her the beer would make her look better than the Oil of Ulay

Goodnight all