Soap box time!

I know it is the holiday season but after a night of doom and gloom on TV things didn't seem to be to festive for many people. I watched dateline which provided a glimpse of the collapsing home mortgage market. It was sad to watch as people were forced out of their homes due to foreclosure. Most of this could have been avoided as far as I am concerned. We all know that some mortgages had been given to people that really did not qualify, and mortgages with all types of fluctuating rates that should have never happened. Many people could afford to pay for their homes if it weren't for these ungodly rates that the banks are forcing them to pay. What good is an empty house to a bank in a collapsing market? This is where the government needs to step in and say enough is enough and force the banks to refinance at an acceptable rate to keep these people in their homes. If everyone thinks that is happening than someone is blowing smoke up their ass. Why isn't their a national lending audit to see who is charging what. I am so frustrated by this. I wonder if these CEO's sleep well at night-crooks!

It was so unnerving that I started to doubt exactly what we had done when we refinanced, even though I was pretty comfortable with everything. So I poured over all of our paperwork and let out a big sigh of relief that everything was in order. How many of you have actually sat down and looked over your mortgage papers since you have purchased your home? Take a good look at your payment plan and it can be staggering. The interest that you pay even with a good rate can be sickening when you realize how much of your money actually goes to principle. Yes I think the banking industry should be shot! I can remember a time when I was small that banks wanted your business and would do anything to get it. There were free lollipops, dog biscuits at the drive in window, free savings books, and you could open up a savings account with as little as ten dollars. The bank personnel greeted you with a smile as you carried in that giant bucket of change that you had been saving for something special and then gave you your grand total after counting it for free.

There is not a bank that I know that does that anymore. They don't take loose change or if some do they charge you to count it. You pay to withdraw your own money from your account, you must have a certain amount of money to open up a checking or savings, you must keep a certain amount of money in there or they will charge you, not enough funds you will be charged, use an out of network ATM machine you will be charged, need checks you will be charged, and the list goes on. Now when you call the bank to check on something they will tell you that you can do all that on line. Well what am I paying them for? Then there may be that one day when you go to the bank and they don't have your money, god help you if you are smart enough to get ahead but choose the wrong bank to put more than what the federal government insures.

It just might be better to keep your money at home under the mattress these days to get a good nights sleep. Remember that old saying a penny found is a penny earned. Or is it a penny earned is a penny saved? I am not quite sure why pennies are still in circulation. It is not uncommon to find pennies nowadays. People don't want them so you will find many in those loose change trays that are in store for those people that need a penny or so. What can you buy with a penny? Now that is a real brain teaser!

Then I had to sit through another debate on gay marriage, religion, the Bible, and Rick Warren.

It was time to get a drink by now. Oh my the debate of what a union is, how the church sees it, and it goes on. Time for another drink. I think there are more important things to address right now in this country.

The next segment is on the new doll baby on the market. I think it is called Little Mommy Doll. It appears that some of the dolls that were manufactured have a phrase that they whisper, "Islam is the light". There seemed to be a discrepancy about this before they hit the market and evidently someone does not want to loose a dollar and went ahead with distribution. Why not be honest and stamp this on the box. More Crooks!

They are going to try to get rid of the death penalty in the state of Maryland. Well as a taxpayer I don't want to pay for more violent REPEATING criminals to live the rest of their life in prison. Our prisons are already too crowded. So now we are going to release these petty thieves with drug habits to annoy the public by breaking and entering, stealing, and taking up police and court time. In the mean time we can watch our insurance premiums go up as we pay out of pocket for these petty theft damages to fuel their drug habits. I want to say to all the bleeding hearts out there when you look at the statistics there are very few that are innocent that get put to death. Let's not forget the innocent that have been murdered that have no appeal.

I did get to catch shoes being thrown at President Bush. I am not happy with the way things have turned out, however I do have enough respect for the leader of our country to restrain from such a display of ignorance. I am finding I have less tolerance for other countries acts of dislike for Americans. This is fine , than stay in your own country and reap what you sow. It would also be nice if these countries would stop depending on foreign government help from the United States.

Then I watched a segment on how Mexican workers are returning home back across the border due to the lack of work in the United States. Hmmm! There were probably many good workers and I feel for them, but I also have something to say on this issue. I was born and raised in the United States. I have been working since I was 16 and have paid taxes. I found it to be absurd when I applied for a managers position at TGI Fridays for them to want me to learn Spanish so I could communicate with the kitchen staff. Um the last time I looked we were an ENGLISH SPEAKING country. I am still in the states and didn't apply for this job in Mexico. After doing my research there are TGI Friday locations that are independently owned and the owners will get their kitchen staff from Mexico on green cards. Guess what I have never eaten at any TGI Friday's since. It had nothing to due with the fact that they had a Mexican staff. It was all about the fact the number one they were green card workers that were taking away jobs from American citizens at less pay, and that they should speak English if they want to work here. It was a slap in the face as an American! It is the principle of it all. I am tired of being abused in my own country.

Well on a lighter note after 3 glasses of wine I mellowed out and put a movie in. Thought I would share a nice choice of appetizer or dessert wine for you to try as I get a little soap box time!