About 60 protesters opposed to the U.S. Federal Reserve's help in bailing out Bear Stearns entered the lobby of the investment bank's Manhattan headquarters on Wednesday, demanding assistance for struggling homeowners. Demonstrators organized by the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America chanted "Help Main Street, not Wall Street" and entered the lobby without an invitation for around half an hour before being escorted out by police. "There are no provisions for homeowners in this deal. There are people out there struggling who need help," said Detria Austin, an organizer at NACA, an advocacy group for home ownership. Bear Stearns employees were alternatively amused and perplexed, taking pictures on their cell phones. "Homeowners, that's more than $1 trillion (in mortgage debt), you're crazy," one man in a suit screamed at a protester on the street. http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSN2644281720080326
Funny. On March 13, I heard some rumors of the Government planning for this sort of thing on a massive scale. I've heard too much to totally dismiss it. But here it is already. We got trouble here in River City. And the River is the Hudson. Nice job regulators. Nice fucking job. Anybody want to take an over/under on the violence? Amazing how when you kick people out in the street, but leave mulitmillionaires whole, how some people take it personally.
If the S&P were 100 handles lower, the protesters would have been "destructive". Protests during price rallies tend to be peaceful.
This is only the start. The FED has no idea what a can of worms they have opened up. People will start losing it, Timothy McVeigh copycats are just waiting to make their moves.
I'm not sure why they expect any bailout money from the government. Don't they know that we usually only waste money on needless wars overseas and pork projects domestically. The Fed is only giving money to Wall St to prop up the remaining banks and improve their bottom line. I don't agree with any of that but I'm not sure why people think the govt should bail out mortgage borrowers either. Let's face it, these people got houses they could not afford in the first place and are now going to go into foreclosure. That's the way the process should go and the market will adjust and re-price accordingly. If they lose their houses it is their fault not the tax payers. There are other choices for living situations other than owning a house. Folks in Haiti eat dirt to get by so I'm not going to lose any sleep if some Americans have to go back to renting apartments and eating off the $1 menu at McDonalds. Sorry...
None of this has anything to do with reality. Masses dont' deal with reallity. They deal with perception. Somebody else expound on what the perception is. Go ask the townspeople on what it's like to buy $2 eggs, 5 dollar milk, $3.50 gas, and then 'perceive' Wall St. millionaires are on the Government dole. Sorry. Ain't no punchline here.
Let's just hope we don't have a blackout this summer in NYC while we are in a deep recession. I already got my Beretta 9mm just in case.