Over the course of the next few days, there will be a bipartisan attempt to reach consensus on a huge bailout of the financial sector. The upshot being that the government will be in the driver's seat to demand certain concessions that could actually benefit the citizens of our country. While we have the chance, I think we ought to "bailout" the populace, which has victim to deceptive mortgage practices, exploding healthcare costs, wage stagnation and increasing unemployment.
First off, we need to settle once and for all the remaining issues with high cost mortgages, such as ARMs, ALT-As etc. Secondly, the mortgage needs to be based on the true appraised value of the home.
Solution one, make fixed rate 4% non qualifying loans available to any current mortgage holder not now in default. Base it on true value, updated annually. That is, should home prices continue to decline in value, ergo, so does the principle owed. This stops the increasing spread of walkaways which is bedeviling the industry. The interest rate introduces stability to the marketplace and eliminates volatity.
Reinstitute Glass- Steagle. Immediately.
To end another problem, medical bankruptcies which have a direct bearing on thousands losing their homes, we must get Congress working on formulating and enacting single payer health plans, modeled on the French system. Our candidates natter on about "affordable" health care. As long as the private sector is involved, that subject is a myth and we know it.
Living wages. Actual wages have steadily declined for nearly a decade. Purchasing power of consumers is rapidly approaching Third World status. A living minimum wage must be enacted that transcends Federal poverty level guidelines. To ensure a lasting legacy, that wage must have safeguards, such as indexing to inflation and IRS tax tables to eliminate "bracket creep".
To re- inject sorely needed capital back into the economy in the future and support the programs I propose, we would need to eliminate global military bases, (we currently have 336 outposts around the world) and command structures most notably in Iraq, Germany and South Korea. The US is "supposed" to protect the world, from what, I'm not sure. But the bottom line is, we can no longer afford the current military industrial complex and it needs to end.
There are a lot of causes that have contributed to the current panic, but common sense can prevail in making a more fair and just society for all of us with just a little bit of original thinking and initiative.