I'm not a big fan of Time because they tend to be rather myopic in their perspective, but this article was actually pretty good. It didn't cover everything, of course, and that article from Real Clear Politics filled a major gap (thanks for that link too!). Obviously, the problem was a combination of both. Subprime mortgages started off as a Congressional mandate due to some politically correct BS, but then banks took the idea...to the bank.
Basically, the situation sucks.
I hate the fact that Congress came up with a stupid plan that came back to bite us in the ass 20 years later, and no one is owning up to that. I hate the fact that "Wall Street" was stupid and greedy and yet the American people have to pay for their mistakes. I also hate the fact that the government will bail out those latter idiots in their mess but the thousands of American citizens that are defaulting on their mortgages and loosing their houses (like my war-hero cousin recently returned from 2 years in Iraq to be met with bankruptcy and the loss of his house) just have to suck it up.
It's recockulous and unfair.
However, I do understand that Bush basically had no choice but to bail out AIG, etc., because if he didn't, we might see worldwide economic collapse in just a few months.
I hope this will at least be a wake-up call to people who regularly spend 110% or more of their income every year. Our debt (personal and national) will kill us if we're not careful. The Hammer of Damocles is threatening to fall.
