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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: bentway who wrote (367193)	1/17/2008 10:57:09 AM
From: tejek	Respond to of 1576323

Because we need our dollar to be worth something and to encourage Americans to SAVE MONEY instead of borrowing it to buy stuff. The lowest interest rates in fifty years created a MORAL HAZARD that too many Americans fell into. Maybe we need savings accounts to pay 8-12% to encourage people to save money instead of borrowing it? Chris, you are moralizing; not talking good economics. I've said it before and I will say it again, we don't need a judeo-christian solution to the problem. And like I said to John, Japan and the EU have had low interest rates and they never developed the millions of dollars of subprime loans. The reason? Because the lenders there did not dare. And there was a time in the US that very, very few lenders would have taken such risks and pulled such stunts. However, under Bush, everything has gotten a little lax. We have a NEGATIVE SAVINGS rate in this country. That is, if you subtract peoples obligations, mortgages, car loans, credit cards, etc., they OWE more than their assets are worth. With home values declining It is not an argument for not lowering interest rates but apparently it plays to your tough love approach to life. Its best not to get the two confused.