Gulf Coast vs. Bailout

Random Thoughts on Paper

Gulf Coast vs. Bailout

By: Crystal Laramore

8 OCT 08

Maybe the reason we’re not hearing much about Galveston and the Gulf Coast and our heart-wrenching destruction is because the nation is too focused on how much money we are all handing over to companies like AIG, etc.

Billions of dollars floating around is just a lot sexier to talk about than debris, disaster relief and thousands of new homeless people. Let’s face it, Ike just hit at the wrong time. If he’d just come a month earlier or a few months later maybe we could give our un-divided attention to how he destroyed Galveston, Orange, Port Bolivar, La Porte, Bayou Vista, Kemah, Seabrook, Omega Bay, Houston, Coldspring, Conroe, Dayton, Liberty and other less sexy cities.

Plus we have the election on our minds. If either one of those two men running for President would act presidential and put together a benefit concert or throw some of that 700 BILLION dollars towards the Gulf Coast Region…oh, then there’s that 1.3 TRILLION we (cuz the feds means You and Me) are spending to buy three-month unsecured and asset-backed commercial paper directly from eligible companies. We hope to have the program up and running soon, Fed officials said. Really? WE do? No one discussed it with us, did they?

And really, I understand why. It’s because we’d have none of it. Guys, this is socialism. This is taxation without representation. This is YOUR money. Dumb it down if you need to but explain it to everyone you see: The feds are spending our money. It is time for a revolution folks. Our senators and congressmen did NOT listen to “We the People” when they voted FOR this bailout bill.

If every taxpayer in the U.S. had received the 700 BILLION we each would have received about $6,000.00. Could you use an extra six grand? I could. I have damage from hurricane Ike that I need to repair. Oh, back to that damn hurricane again? Yes. This bailout is unconstitutional. The hurricane? Natural disaster. Not one person or one entity is at fault for the vast destruction caused by hurricane Ike. However, there are thousands of people and several entities directly at fault for the collapse of these financial institutions.

You tell me what job in America or anywhere in the world is worth 480 million in an eight-year period. (Granted a lot of that, close to half, went towards taxes but still…)Yet, 480 MILLION DOLLARS is exactly how much money Robert Fuld, CEO of Lehman Brothers, “earned?” in the last 8 years! And all while his company was collapsing! I think we call that “cooking the books”. See Arthur Anderson and ENRON. Oh, speaking of ENRON, we bailed them out too. We (YOU and ME) gave them a nice package so all the nice people working there would not lose all of their 401k’s and investments…NOT our problem people. This is NOT the governments business. You have to decide if you want a capitalist, socialist or communist way of life. Pick a team and stick to it. We cannot have it all three ways. We are either going to abide by the constitution or not. BTW, our constitution is the only one that has stood the test of time. It’s a good constitution and it has served us well. Where we are not being served well is by the politicians who do not abide by it or bend its meaning.

EVERY DAY we are double taxed and our wants are ignored. Heck, if we are ignored then that would mean at least somebody listened to us. So, I take that back, we are not even being listened to! Have I said the word revolution yet?

Meanwhile, back in Galveston…try as we might Sue and I could not find ONE benefit concert. It was Sunday and the weather was beautiful but not ONE concert in session to raise money to help those in need. Not one. No famous people in sight. Not one.

Driving down the streets, in my very dirty convertible, we must have pulled over a dozen times to take pictures. We were in awe. In awe that almost 4 weeks later; the island still looks like a war zone. And I know what a war zone looks like-up close and personal...it looks like Galveston Island, it looks like my step-father's neighborhood in Bayou Vista; it’s very eerie.

The souvenir shop that we ALWAYS went to since I was a child is gone. Just gone. And in the interior of the island-where there is NO WAY water could have reached…WAY-water did reach; and left destruction in almost every building.

Scott Arnold’s landmark restaurant, the Balinese Ballroom, built in the 1920’s is gone. Did you hear me? GONE. It’s now pilings. That’s it. Pilings. It was an old wooden restaurant that seemed to stretch forever out over the water. Long and narrow. A landmark. A part of history is gone forever. Graduating seniors and young men with beautiful prom dates; couples celebrating milestone anniversaries and anyone celebrating a milestone birthday will now have to plan their event elsewhere. I remember going there for a fancy dinner with a lot of my friends many years ago. Twenty of us sat at a long table, dressed in our best, with wait staff to serve us all. It was quite an experience.

When Scott bought the Balinese Ballroom he made a lot of changes. He served the needs of the young, the old, the hip and the traditionalists. He served the Heavy Metal lovers and the Rock and Roll lovers. He served the bikers and tourists. Tourists from around the world who happened in, to their good fortune, on a weekend night and were blessed to hear the best blues and Jazz music Galveston had to offer, will now have to…you guessed it…go to New Orleans. You see, New Orleans had their benefit concerts.

But Scott will not get a bail out; even though he served the public well. Scott will not get any of his tax dollars back that he’s paid in over the years. No, Scott’s tax dollars went to bail out companies who made poor decisions while their CEO’s made millions.

Van Brookshire, who is running for State Representative for House District 12, said today in a phone interview “This is a step toward socialism. What we are doing is rewarding incompetence and in some cases out-right theft and manipulation of the markets”. When asked if Mr. Brookshire would have voted “for this bill he said “NO!”

President Bush also was set to talk about the government's bailout effort, which lets the government buy rotten mortgages and other bad debts from banks and other financial institutions. (Call me crazy but isn’t that how we got into this mess to start with?) By getting these bad debts off bank's balance sheets, they might be in a better position to raise capital and be more willing to lend to each other and to customers.

Van Brookshire also went on to say “I like Newt Gingrich’s plan of working our way out of this problem instead of bailing it out”.

I’m a small business owner and when I make a mistake I certainly have to work my way out of it. If my business is not making money, I DON’T MAKE MONEY! If I make poor business decisions I am NOT rewarded. Therefore, I do my best to make good decisions. That includes doing a lot of hard work myself. It includes hiring responsibly and firing responsibly. In my world, if I do not do the right thing, I am not rewarded. So if we don’t hold everyone to those same standards what is the incentive to do the right thing?

But, we didn’t get here over night people. In the 80’s the banks were MADE to make sub-prime loans to people who just could not afford to pay them back. Banks were forced to make poor decisions so as not to discriminate against the poor. Mortgage companies falsified legal documents as late as a week ago to get people into houses they could not afford. It almost happened to me in 2005. However, I kept asking how much my interest rate was going to be and if it was fixed and I never got an answer. Therefore, I did not show up to closing. If your mortgage company is not forthcoming with information and trying to "Push through" your loan - Here's Your Sign!

This is not a land of equal capacity. It’s a land of equal rights. But owning a house or a business is not a right. It’s a privilege; a privilege that comes from hard work and good decisions.

First National Bank of Livingston just re-financed my building that houses my business. Corky Evans was my loan officer. Corky looked over my credit report and my books for the last seven years I have been in business. He then presented his findings to a board that made an educated decision. Corky knows I have made my current mortgage payments for the last seven years on time EVERY month. Corky has been in my business and experienced its success. I have paid my dues, never borrowed money and pay my bills on time. I do whatever is necessary to be successful. After SEVEN years of hard work and dedication I have been rewarded.

And, First National Bank will be rewarded for making a good loan. They will be rewarded with interest. Speaking of interest, I know what my interest rate is. I know the terms of my loan. Corky went over it with me. I asked pertinent financial questions and he answered them. If I have more questions all I have to do is call. Corky informed me that they house all of their loans. They don’t sell them to larger financial institutions. If they make poor lending decisions they have to suffer the consequences. No bail out for them either…