Professor Elam

Click here to read the FNM annual report.  Please read the letters from the Chairman and the CEO. Then read the finanical highlights. Clealry all the hot air is not coming from the politicians running for office. 

If you are reading the blog you are aware the Feds just 'bailed out FNM and FRE. Having read their recent messages, here are some questions.

Should the Fedeara Govt have bailed them out?

What will that cost?  hould the government lend the money and expect to be repaid ala Chrysler? Or is the government going to buy stock essentially giving FNM the money?

The muckety mucks at FNM, FRE, BSC Bear Stearns all paid them selves handsome bonuses the last few years for the great jobs they did. As Jim rogers said, apparently they get to keep the Maseratis they bought with the bonuses. Should the govenrment require those bonuses be repaid?  Yes that is a small amount compared to the bailout but wouldn't that show at least some accountability and contrition on the part of the bandits that paid themselves now that you adn I are paying for their mistakes, hey, where is my Maserati?

At least the top guys got fired. As Jeff Skilling of Enron sits in jail appearling his sentence over Enron, what should happen to these guys?  I am sure Jeff is wondering why they are not joining him in colorful oreange jump suits in the exercise yard so to speak…indeed, what say you?

why is this farce allowed to continue, why not get the government out of the guarantee business?  think about it, this is the perfect storm for a fiasco. The govt guarantees all the mortgage payments. so, why not jiggle the books to make things look good, everyone comes out a winner?  Why not take som erisk to make the returns look better, Uncle Sam is guaranteeing our mistakes anyway?

Why not break this up into smaller comapanies that would be expeected to exercise sound practices without govt guarantees, then perhaps we would not have had this happen.

What say you?