I reread your post and I agree with you to a certain extent. I actually think it's a very dysfunctional relationship. It's like looking at a family where the husband is a control freak and takes advantage of the wife who gives into everything he says. Who is more right? wrong? Well, they both are in their own way. But when you say 'usury', you remind me of practices a hundred or more years ago and modern day America is nothing like that. Any of these individuals could rent a nice house and save up for a deposit just like the rest of us. They are not being forced to live in a slum and pay interest on their food and utilities. So I'm sorry, but I think you're going too far with the 'usury' comparison...
Close, it was all politics, can't you see George Bush last year at this time standing in front of that microphone saying " more Americans own their own home now that every before" It was all part of the....keep the Republicans in power strategy. That god it failed.
You guys are missing one of the real issues with our banking system. It's call fractional reserve banking, thats one of the problems. The ability to loan out 10 times what you have in deposits. Thats fractional reserve banking. So that 8.00% loan you get and think wow thats a great rate, is really 80.00% to that bank. You deposit $5000.00 the bank can loan out $50,000. And what do you get for your $5000.00????????? What a racket!
And to think that they have that kind of edge and still can't produce steady profits, something is really wrong people.
Like was said in an earlier response to this thread..many other countries have a central bank to control the "speed limits" of our economic health. Some of you believe that we are supposed to live in a utopia type economic setting where interest rates, moneyflows, and other variables are always in perfect rhythm. Thats just not realistic. Stop dreaming ppl..and use the FED to ur advantage when you trade. If you dont know how to do that..look for something else to do. The Fed is here to stay, so just deal with it......
someone can be affected by usurious money creation policy and also be wealthy. they're not mutually exclusive
Well, okay, it's a matter of definition I guess. When I think 'usury', I think essentially of individucals forced into a high interest rate for essential goods and services. A wealthy, educated person that takes on an ARM that they can't afford just doesn't seem like usury to me. Think about this: what are mortgages sitting at right now? 6.25% or something? If you have an ARM and your mortgage has gone up a point to 6.25% or 6.50%, can you really call that "exhorbitant interest"?? I use that term because that is, I believe, the definition of usury: 1. the lending or practice of lending money at an exorbitant interest. 2. an exorbitant amount or rate of interest, esp. in excess of the legal rate.
it's definitely an antiquated term, and i wasn't trying to open a semantic debate so much as illustrate that the ability to afford things doesn't mean the monetary system isn't working against most people. more generally i think usury means paying an exorbitant fee for the use of money. interest is one cost of money, inflation is too. if you wish to keep money, you're paying the rate of inflation to do so. everyone disagrees about the true rate of inflation, cpi, compensation with cheaper goods from china, etc. that's another conversation, but when banks have the privilege of creating money at the expense of everyone else's savings, personally i think that qualifies as usurious. might be wrong about that but you get my meaning
Don't take this site too seriously especially when you see people claim that driving a taxi is an honorable job or that Smart Serious Sellers must price their homes below what all the other homes are listed at. Throw in the Ron Paul zealots, the O'Reilly fans, etc... this site serves as nice entertainment.