As for corporation losing interest deductibility, I say fine, but let’s make dividends tax deductible. Let’s equitize the system.

I agree that the mortgage tax deduction should be phased out somehow, but that isn’t sufficient to explain the crisis. Just as F&F can’t explain it given both have roots going back more than half a century and we didn’t see these problems until we had deregulation and an executive that happily turned blind eyes on borderline or actual fraud. After all, the Fed had a lot of authority it didn’t use to restrict none bank mortgage lending that would be clearly criminal fraud if a bank did it as systematically as the investment bank mortgage boiler room mortgage originators.

But what seems to me is the far bigger threat of the debt used by corporate execs to avoid having to obtain capital from selling stock to investors who might find the returns on capital too low to justify the venture. Or the factoring of receivables and inventory.

We are no longer a capitalist economy, but a debtist economy.

We should phase out the individual mortgage interest deduction after phasing out the interest deduction for corporate debt of all kinds, and drive corporations back to being capitalists.

I have private data on and from many of my readers; I only disclose what they want. Same for underwriting clients. The Treasury is no different in my opinion — they set the rules. I have had insurance regulators ask my opinion on confidential matters. I keep quiet.

Often, bearing responsibility means keeping confidences. In my case, I don’t need access to the Treasury — I have happily lived without it, and probably will in the future. The US Treasury will probably not like what I write, but at least I will write it politely.

File a FOIA, I’ll bet you could get the data. Then blog your success. Go for it.

Were there any questions or explanations as to why the taxpayer was required to bailout bond holders of these large institutions? Except for Lehman, every other holding company bond holder has been bailed out at tremendous cost and likely wreaked havoc via moral hazard.

Thanks for the insight.

Not knowing the level of Govt reps at the meeting, and assuming they were not top level, it is understandable that they are still living in fantasy of ignorance. I must assume the top guys know the end game and are in the process of sucking out every last cent while they still can.

I will remind you that we are facing a global crisis which is primarily a currency problem…
assuming we overlook all the fraud and corruption.

Taking handouts from the Treasury? You’re the same as the banks

http://fridayinvegas.blogspot.com/2009/11/sit-down-with-senior-treasury-officials.html