Today's
recommended reading, the value of which is broadly debated, is The IBD
series by the "anti-Krugman," Thomas Sowell (The Housing Boom and Bust)
Sowell may not be the only person to write objectively about what caused out
current misfortune, but he's the only one I trust implicitly.
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There
were many who shared the responsibility — or, in this case, the
irresponsibility — for the housing boom that was fueled by easier
credit, lower mortgage approval standards and "creative" financing.
Moreover, like many disasters, this one began with good intentions.
At the heart of those good intentions was the quest for "affordable
housing," another way of expressing the crusade for more home ownership
among a wider range of people.
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One of
the most damning pieces of evidence for the notion of a biased
Donk-Media Complex has
been, for me, the total absence of Sowell, Sowell's ideas, and
references to
Sowell on the Sunday shows, or anywhere else in the broadcast
media. In a world where where Keith Olbermann and Chris
Mathews have their
own shows? Puh-leeeze. I even came to wonder whether Sowell
had a
speech impediment, a squeaky girl voice, or perhaps spoke in
Ebonics? Nope. As with Dr. Walter E Williams, Justice Clarence Thomas, et.al, it's a manifestation of Liberal media nightmares of Nat Turner run amok. A Black intellectual whose words and ideas might cause rebellion on the plantation.
Part III, the most recent in what is a five part series begins:
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In
2002, the George W. Bush administration urged Congress to pass the
American Dream Downpayment Act, which subsidized the down payments of
prospective home buyers whose incomes were below a certain level.
After passage of that act, the president also urged Congress to pass
legislation permitting the Federal Housing Administration to begin
making zero-down-payment loans at low interest rates to low-income
Americans.
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If you want to play catch-up --
Part I -- Housing Bust: Sowell Series Starts Today
Part II -- How Little Law From '70s Brought The Financial System To Its Knees
Part III -- How Fannie Mae And Freddie Mac Sank In The Subprime Quicksand
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