essmier: I agree not all who are in trouble are thieves. I am in the housing industry, and I can tell you that the lax financing standards and temptation to jump in over your head with tickler rates or mid -stream balloon payments has been too much temptation for those who knew they were riding a fine fine. The industry overbuilt (still a horrendous volume of new, unsold homes in the ground) and the result is where we are. A devaluation of home prices is natural, the foreclosures was predictable.

Again, most of these foreclosures are not due to lay-offs. Those will be coming down the pike. It simply makes me sad that Obama caves into the notion of entitlement: "I deserve this home." There are plenty of homes I might deserve, but I know they are outside the prudent reach of my finances.

An aside: I vote Libertarian (my other posts over the years point to this). I am completely amazed at just how dogmatic the cries from the Left and Right remain in spite of all the facts. It's pointless to argue from those positions as no one seems to accept reality over ideology. We need a third party to emerge that doesn't play this tactic. The time is ripe for Americans to rethink their political stripes.

How about snake oil salesman, carnival barker, ring master for the greatest show on earth.

The constant dividing of this problem along party lines is simply immature. Both parties were and continue to be complicit in the economic problems we face.

We are rewarding bad decisions. Far more people taking risky mortgages with sub-prime credit and teaser loans knew they were taking risk, great risk. This is all about greed from the lenders and the home buyers who believed they would get something big for next to nothing. Well, it's big, but it's costing us a lot more than nothing.

Thanks, Obama. I haven't missed a mortgage payment in nearly 30 years. It might be time for me to stop paying so you will reward me too.

There are no homes foreclosing in my neighborhood. No we aren't wealthy, we are prudent. I feel no real sadness for anyone who thought "this deal is too good to be true." It was, and now I get to pay for my house, their homes and maybe even yours for all I know.

A home is a commodity whether you can see that or not, and there is more of this commodity available than we need on the market. Falling prices have more to do with unsold homes than foreclosed upon homes. No need to defy the laws of supply and demand to fabricate entitlement.

You show your inclination to dogmatic crap and not the truth. The truth is the general population is't so enamoured with what is happeneing vs. the promises. Could you pick a poll anymore liberal leaning than this? I doubt it.

Try reporting the truth rather than the smell of your politcial feces. With some truth, your e-zine will live on forever! Continue pandering to the the left or begin pandering to the right (we know that can't happen) and you'll just be another empty site filled with orthodoxy of no use in solving problems or understanding the issues. Come up for air, will you?

Anyone following Rush is crazy. He's not a truth seeker he's a supporter of anything that isn't of the Democratic party.

Conversely, and Democrat who thinks Rush his the leader of the GOP in any shape or form is simply a dogmatic idiot.

What a joke.

Someone else said it, who cares? What is sickening is that our political process and platforms have become the very cancer that will kill our republic.

Neither party should get any support or spin on this matter from real journalists. Get off the lapdog routine and understand that articles like this do nothing to stop the trend of the Dems or the GOP to ruin America.

It's time for change. We need new blood, honest blood, statesmanship aimed at the heart of American values, if we have any left that is.

I agree in part, Andrew, capitalism as we know it is dead, or should be. I am not afraid of unregulated markets. What I am afraid of is bad intentions in an unregulated market. I suppose given the nature of the human condition we will find thieves at every turn no matter how the system evolves.

What we need is the spirit of free capitalism with heavy handed prosecution of those who steal, cheat or otherwise upset the natural order of supply and demand by deception and outright malfeasance. No more white color prisons.

Let's prosecute the Madoffs and corporate thieves and toss them in the general population of prisoners in hard time prisons and let their soft delicate skin be an invitation to all in need of some lovin'. Once their in prison, distribute their wealth, all of it, to those who have been harmed. If victims can't be readily identified, put the money in a fund to help children and the poor get out of the cycle of endless hopelessness.

First, Obama's talk is no different than Cramer's talk or any other market-monkey who bid the market up in light of the truth. Obama drove it down with equal vigor as he frightened the American people to stop spending money. The destruction of jobs and further erosion of the market is self evident.

The only think Mr. Obama will be able to take credit for is spending unfathomable amounts of money that no one has earned. Sort of the new "transparent" version of the Wall Street schemers baseless wealth. we paid for that, and now we'll pay for this.