Here is the new money being printed to pay for the bailout.

Inside Bay Area: Foreclosure victims may lose voting rights if they don't re-register
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(blog) At the bottom of the article, notice the dramatic comparison between 2004 and 2008 in the number of notices of default, notices of trustee sale, and foreclosures. - Ron Bensley, Jr.

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Foreclosure victims may lose voting rights if they don't re-register - By Matthias Gafni
CONTRA COSTA TIMES

An estimated 11,000 Contra Costa residents will have lost their house this year by the presidential election, causing concerns that they won't register at their new address. View Full Story

Credit union membership looking good
Typically, people prefer to put their money in large banks. Most like the extra sense of security and the variety of features and services they offer.

But lately, Mr. Big Bank has taken on the characteristics of a high maintenance relationship: fickle terms, low returns, hefty fees and - finally - the meltdown.

So some people have started flirting with the competition. Credit unions in particular are getting a good once-over, and many like what they see.

"We have seen some pretty strong growth this year," said Joe Mecca, a spokesman for Coastal Federal Credit Union in Raleigh, N.C.

"We don't have to pay dividends to shareholders," Mecca said. "We don't have to go out and make a profit, because the people we are making money off of own us." [Read story at SunHearld.com/by Vicki Lee Parker].

I love milk

Diversity

Forget Banks, Join the Credit Union
Credit unions, not-for-profit financial institutions owned by their members, may be among the safest financial institutions in the nation, despite our nation’s current economic struggles. And as a result, they are gaining recognition among consumers as well as on Capitol Hill for not only having avoided the problems that created today’s financial mess, but for being a huge part of the solution.

“In the wake of the Lehman Bros. and Merrill Lynch debacles, many consumers are becoming more and more concerned about the financial soundness of their financial institutions,” said Guy M. Hood, President/CEO of the Florida Credit Union League (FCUL). “Where some financial institutions are reeling from the economy, credit unions are not. There has also been some hype about money in credit unions being unsafe, when, in fact, it is just as safe being insured with the National Credit Union Association (NCUA) as money with FDIC.” Credit union deposits, called shares, are insured by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), a federal agency offering deposit account coverage just like the FDIC, to at least $100,000 per insured account. Although there have been many news that have focused exclusively on FDIC insurance at banks the federal insurance provided by NCUA for credit unions has often been overlooked.

Recent segments on CNN and other news shows as well as an article in Politico magazine on Capitol Hill recognized credit unions as strong and secure institutions that avoided the bad lending practices that caused today’s financial crisis. [Read story at ThePineHillNews.com].

 

San Diego bank robbery by three men in Halloween masks
As reported by San Diego's KFMB TV, "Three men in Halloween masks doused tellers with pepper spray" during a bank robbery on Tuesday, September 30.

This isn't the first time bank robbers have used tear-gas-like chemicals against employees. Nonetheless, Tuesday's San Diego robbery incident may create a "trend" for other bank robbers to imitate. There are disturbing safety-and-health questions for employees and for clients conducting business in the facility.

What are sound security measures which credit unions and banks could undertake to deter these kind of malicious attacks? What can our lawmakers and our criminal justice system do to deter chemical attacks against financial institution employees?

Ron Bensley, Jr.

2004 Video clips about the regulation of Freddie/Fannie

But, I'm not old enough to get married yet!

The RADDON Report blog
The Raddon Report

How are the kids?

As Bank of America grows, so do concerns
I have seen the future, and it is Rollerball.

I don't mean the carnage-crazy sport played by James Caan in the 1975 movie. I mean the film's depiction of life in 2018, when "corporate wars" have left the world controlled not by governments but by business monopolies -- Energy, Transport, Food, Communications, Housing and Luxury.

Bank of America Corp.'s multibillion-dollar takeover of Merrill Lynch & Co. is the latest in a string of breathtaking acquisitions that has created a financial powerhouse so vast it seems well on its way to becoming a seventh heavyweight on the Rollerball global-domination list: Money.

Once the Merrill buyout is complete, BofA will rank as the country's largest retail bank, the largest credit card issuer, the largest mortgage provider and the largest retail brokerage. The bank has about 59 million consumer and small-business accounts, roughly $163 billion in credit card loans and more than 6,000 branches. [Read story at LosAngelesTimes.com/by David Lazarus].

Declaration of Financial Independence
ING Direct's Arkadi Kuhlmann has published "Our Declaration of Financial Independence", under the topic We, The Savers. He offers a ten-point plan for ordinary Americans to be in control of their financial life, in spite of America's current financial and political problems.

I heartily endorse Arkadi's thoughts on this topic.  Credit unionists should ponder how they can apply and share this message within the ranks of their credit union membership. His number one point in all this: WE WILL SPEND LESS THAN WE EARN.

- Ron Bensley, Jr.