| Recently, the local government in Philadelphia, | | | | mortgages. They are receiving hundreds of billions of |
| Pennsylvania has made the decision to suspend sheriff | | | | dollars from the Federal Reserve, which essentially |
| sales of foreclosed properties. No more foreclosure | | | | pays off many of these mortgages. So where is their |
| auctions will be conducted for homeowners who have | | | | standing to sue? The people who pay taxes have |
| adjustable rate, subprime mortgages, and the | | | | already paid off the defaulted mortgages through the |
| suspension will last all through the month of April. This | | | | Fed's granting of US Treasury securities to the banks. |
| remarkable measure may provide relief to thousands | | | | If the banks no longer own the mortgages, and have |
| of homeowners, and is one of the very small victories | | | | had them paid off nonetheless, it would seem they |
| for individuals in the foreclosure crisis. | | | | have little reason to keep going after homeowners to |
| From Ohio judges throwing foreclosure lawsuits out of | | | | steal properties. |
| court to this latest suspension of sheriff sales, local | | | | Ending the incessant whining about subprime |
| governments have been able to act much more | | | | mortgages going bad and the danger of the survival of |
| forcefully to combat the rising foreclosures than the | | | | the banking industry, though, would mean the banks |
| federal government. Anyway, no one can really tell | | | | would not be able to ask for more bailouts. The banks |
| which companies, hedge funds, investors, or banks | | | | already made a killing on the way up by packaging |
| own the paperwork and have the legal right to collect | | | | what they knew were bad loans and selling them to |
| on the loan. The marketing of subprime loans was just | | | | unsuspecting investors, who were fooled by the |
| a scheme to generate as much money as possible in | | | | bond-rating agencies into purchasing what they |
| loan origination fees and sell toxic loans to investors. | | | | believed were prime-rated securities. Now that the |
| This has been accomplished and now the fallout must | | | | loans are going bad, the banks' reserves are drying up |
| be dealt with. | | | | (on paper), so they need generous loans and free |
| But banks are getting their bailout courtesy of the | | | | money from the Fed to ensure that they can make |
| American public, through generous loans and packages | | | | more money on the resulting crash of the market. |
| provided by the Federal Reserve. It seems that it is | | | | The people of Philadelphia, by suspending foreclosure |
| only just for people, through their community leaders, to | | | | auctions, may be on to something important. Hopefully, |
| come up with their own solutions. In fact, maybe the | | | | the suspension will last longer than just one month and |
| entire foreclosure crisis will reach some sort of | | | | the banks will have no choice but to deal with |
| perverse equilibrium with the Fed stealing money from | | | | homeowners as negotiating partners, rather than as |
| the public to bail out the banks, creating massive | | | | hosts for their parasitic lending practices. The banks |
| inflation and taking the banking industry completely | | | | have put themselves into a situation where the only |
| away from all government regulation, while | | | | logical reaction for local governments is to realize the |
| homeowners find ways to void out their mortgage | | | | invalidity of the mortgage loans. With the decrease in |
| contracts completely and suspend the auctioning of | | | | property taxes to local governments, the banks' ability |
| their properties and the financial destruction of their | | | | to manipulate local communities into allowing invalid |
| communities. | | | | foreclosure lawsuits to go forward may also be |
| Another question that should be raised is if the banks | | | | evaporating. |
| are suffering any actual damages from the foreclosing | | | | |