A Long Overdue Correction

I just noticed that parts 5 and 6 of the "unsustainable" series posted below are in the wrong order. If you read part 6 first, part 5 will make more sense. My apologies.

Thoughts On Wall Street

Wall Street’s reason for existence is to invest in our economy by providing start-up funding, equity, loans, and other forms of financing to the private sector.   Wall Street is supposed to be like economic fertilizer, spreading money around to promote growth.  If Wall Street makes good investments and helps the economy grow, it should profit.  If not, it shouldn’t.

Interesting Times

So far in 2010 we've seen two huge earthquakes and a tsunami, an airplane flown into an IRS building, a professional hit squad in a hotel, a ticklish congressman amongst an assortment of elected middle-aged perverts and adulterers, and now this . . . Irish police detaining Americans involved in a terrorist plot to kill some Swede. They didn't like the Swede's drawing, you see.

And it's only March. Wear a helmet.

Many More Foreclosures To Come

In my previous post I spoke of the barrier that the massive amount of bad consumer debt poses to economic recovery.  Mother Jones has an article by Andy Knoll describing large numbers of foreclosures hiding in the background that have yet to be processed, and the millions more that have fallen behind but have managed to hold on thus far.  The story is a vivid illustration of the need to resolve as much of this bad debt as quickly as possible.  You can find it here:  http://motherjones.com/mojo/2010/03/foreclosure-shadow-market-grows

Great News! 2009 Credit Card Charge-Offs Exceed $80 Billion

Throughout 2009, outstanding consumer credit balances fell.  This was often described as consumer "deleveraging," or paying off debts.

"Unsustainable"- The Series

Welcome to 2nd Thought.  This blog is still under construction, but a series called "Unsustainable" has been posted to start things off.  This series of articles explores some of the consequences and morality of a debt fueled economy. Enjoy and feel free to comment.

On Borrowed Time

     A Brief Background

Credit Scoring and Subprime Lending

The end of "traditional" lending.

FICO, Credit Bureaus, and Privacy

Who's got your number?

You Have No Choice

Live by the score, die by the score.

"Responsibility"

Responsible to whom?

The New Morality

Honor thy lender.

Trading Prosperity

 Trading labor instead of products.

Stunting A Recovery

The consumer won't be coming to the rescue this time.

Footnotes For The "Unsustainable" Series

Footnotes