BernieHund: The Political Watchdog

It’s over. The Senate voted 74-25 to pass their version of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008. We can pretty well assume that the House will follow.

What can we expect now that we are pretty much assured that the “No Banker Left Behind” program will be fully funded? Apparently, not too much in the immediate future. According to most, including Warren Buffet, there is going to be a continued rise in unemployment and times are going to be tough for Main Street for the next year or two… maybe longer. (Watch the Warren Buffet interview on Charlie Rose) I refer to Warren Buffet because of all the people and/or corporations on the financial scene today, it seems that Mr. Buffet is the one person (and Berkshire Hathaway, his company) that has real money. While every other corporation in the universe seems to be folding or begging for money, Mr. Buffet has the cash to infuse some of the ailing companies.

Voting for change in Washington is one of the ways we can help our ailing economy. We need to do more. There has been so much talk about our dependence on foreign oil during this election season that most of us have realized the need to cut back on excessive driving. But, no one seems to have the guts to tell the rest of the story. We need to cut back on our dependence on credit from the banks. This is not to say that we should not buy a new car when we need one or that we should watch our dreams of buying a house evaporate into thin air. Yet, all of us know that we have depended on banks to finance our everyday purchases.
If we are going to regain control of our lives and our futures we cannot continue to pay 29.99% interest rates to the banks and $39.00 late fees when our credit card payments are a day late. It’s time to cut back on our expenditures that extend beyond our means. That’s the answer. I know it isn’t a popular answer. But, it is the only way we can regain our financial independence and not be personally shackled to the banks and their failures in the future.