The federal reserve exists to create moral hazard. Their policies are designed to lessen the impact of the financial cycle, make booms less of an upswing and make busts less of a drag. However, the recessions at the end of a long boom are necessary. Unsustainable Ponzi-based business plans and lending programs must be purged. If these business and lending practices are allowed to continue, the improper allocation of resources becomes an even larger drag on the economy. Ponzi borrowing [Read More...]
Ponzi borrowing and HELOC Abuse Most people fail to budget properly for unexpected expenses or expenses that do not occur monthly. When these expenses occur, most will borrow the money, often on credit cards. During the year, this debt will accumulate like tooth plaque, and at the end of the year, many debtors hope for a work bonus or a tax refund to clean the debt from their balance sheets. Homeowners, particularly in California, would go to the housing ATM and add to their mortgage to pay for these [Read More...]
Borrowers bow down before their lenders. Borrowers give up control of their own lives when they take on debt as their time and effort go toward paying for the past rather than investing for the future. Borrowing is a weakness, a crushing weight, a debilitating pile of paper detailing a life of servitude in exchange for a borrower’s entitlements. Of course, most borrowers don’t see it that way. They feel powerful. Borrowers believe they are rich because someone was willing to loan them money. The more money [Read More...]

Imagine living in a world without consumer debt. The first credit cards did not appear until after WWII. Prior to WWII, if you wanted to buy something, you needed to save money from your wage income until you could afford to pay cash for it. There was an absolute dependency upon wage income to provide a lifestyle; living beyond your means was not possible unless you had previously saved money, and it could not continue beyond the day you went [Read More...]



Astute Observations