June 16, 2009
Watch out for those exploding credit cards and mortgages!

Posted at 1:17 pm, in: Regulation, Responsibility
Tags: Barack Obama, Credit Cards, Mortgage Meltdown

President Obama plans to create another “watchdog” agency:

WASHINGTON (CNNMoney.com) — When President Obama takes the podium on Wednesday to talk about his proposals for avoiding the next financial crisis, he is expected to unveil one idea that speaks directly to consumers and their pocketbooks.

Obama will call for the creation of a new financial watchdog agency. Its mission will be to protect consumers from deceptive or dangerous mortgages, credit cards and other financial products.

Proponents have dubbed it a “financial products safety commission” akin to the federal agency that oversees safety of toys and other products. Obama himself broached the subject on Jay Leno’s “The Tonight Show” in March.

“When you buy a toaster, if it explodes in your face, there’s a law that says, ‘Your toasters need to be safe,’ ” Obama said. “When you get a credit card or you get a mortgage, there’s no law on the books that says, ‘If that explodes in your face, financially, somehow you’re going to be protected.’ “

I know this is a hard lesson to learn, although I’m less clear on why this is such a hard lesson to learn, but more government intervention is NEVER a good thing. It may sound good on the surface, but the unintended consequences always come back to bite us.

Why don’t consumers learn to protect themselves from “dangerous” mortgages, credit card, and financial products? If consumers would exercise a little restraint when it comes to spending, maybe they (we?) wouldn’t be in the financial mess we find ourselves in. I don’t need government to protect me from myself. Why should I be punished because you, apparently, do?

Does our president not get the difference between an exploding toaster and an exploding credit card or mortgage (Yes, I feel like a moron for even writing a question including anything about exploding credit cards and mortgages. I’m just going on what our president said.)? Credit cards and mortgages don’t just explode. People are given the terms before they sign the deal. If they agree to the terms, then they are responsible for any “explosion” that occurs as a result of those terms.

I don’t feel bad for consumers who went out and bought houses they couldn’t afford. I’m sick of hearing about how there was too much fine print, they didn’t understand what they were agreeing to. They should have hired a lawyer to explain it to them, then. I don’t want to hear about how poor people couldn’t afford a lawyer to look over the mortgage. It’s the biggest financial obligation a person will probably take on in their life. Spend less on the house and get yourself a lawyer with the savings to ensure you don’t get screwed. But, wait, you didn’t get screwed because now I’m bailing you out and with this new consumer watchdog agency, I’m sure there will be more regulation of these industries making it harder for honest people like myself to get the loans and credit I need when it comes time for me to buy a house.

Let’s count the ways that I have been screwed by the irresponsible people who bought houses they couldn’t afford and charged up credit card debt they couldn’t pay back:
1.) The mortgage meltdown caused our entire economy to take a downturn.
2.) My taxes are being used to “stimulate” the economy as a result of this downturn.
3.) My taxes are being used to bail these irresponsible borrowers out of their mortgage debt.
4.) My credit card companies will penalize me for being a responsible borrower, in order to cushion the blow from the government restricting how they penalize responsible borrowers.
5.) It will now be harder for all Americans to get credit when they need it.

Shall I continue? I can’t even continue to blame the politicians. Who voted them in? Who took out mortgages they couldn’t afford? Who charged up credit card bills they couldn’t pay back? Who demanded the government act? It was my fellow American cicitzens, and so it is with you I place the blame. Politicians only have the power we the people give them. The media is only effective if we listen to them. Let’s lie the blame where it belongs. Obama didn’t take office by military coupe.

When Obama is done destroying our country we will only have ourselves to look at. We will each be forced to ask ourselves, what did we do to stop Obama from taking over the Oval Office? I’m afraid we will all come up short, myself included. But, let’s call it for what it is. Yes, the media plays a role, as do these politicians, but politicians and the media only have the power that the citizenry grants them. Unfortunately, sometimes I’m convinced the citizenry doesn’t want the responsibility of that power back.