Just a little more on the topic I raised in the thread about the $100M inheritance

[tboy]

I just watched "too big to fail" last night on HBO about how the US handled the r/e bust and the resulting chaos.

It was pretty interesting and gave me a little more insight on how the whole thing went down.

At about the 98 minute mark they hit on the real reason why it all went down: people in homes not being able to afford to pay back their mortgages and as always, all the big shots were hosing the little guy for all he's worth to line their pockets with gold.

Well you know what? The big guys got screwed by the little guys for a change. Now it wasn't any revolution like with Marie Antoinette, but none the less, a whole bunch of little people brought down some of the biggest names in the business.....

Another important line from Paulson when talking to someone else: do you honestly think that any bank in the world has the captial onhand if their customers decided to withdraw all their money? NO one does....if the customers start pulling their money every bank will fold.....

Now I don't think people keyed in on this factor. WE have the power actually. Think of it: organize the little people, approach each major bank and say to them: I have guarantees from 80% of your customers. If you don't reduce your exorbinant fees, relax your charges, and start giving back to us, we'll not only pull OUR money, but stop paying back our loans and mortgages.......how do you think they'd react?

First I bet they wouldn't believe us......but like the CEO of Lehman bros: he lost $300 million in ONE week.......that will make them wake up and smell the coffee....

Same goes for utility companies too. If all their customers protested the higher rates by not paying their utility bills just for 2 months, that might put the scare into them......

 

[Nothingtodo]

Here you go Tboy and fans.

https://www.propublica.org/article/in-hbos-too-big-to-fail-the-heroes-are-really-zeroes

 

[Al Bumin]

Now I don't think people keyed in on this factor. WE have the power actually. Think of it: organize the little people, approach each major bank and say to them: I have guarantees from 80% of your customers. If you don't reduce your exorbinant fees, relax your charges, and start giving back to us, we'll not only pull OUR money, but stop paying back our loans and mortgages.......how do you think they'd react?

First I bet they wouldn't believe us......but like the CEO of Lehman bros: he lost $300 million in ONE week.......that will make them wake up and smell the coffee....

Same goes for utility companies too. If all their customers protested the higher rates by not paying their utility bills just for 2 months, that might put the scare into them......

Good thoughts but it will never happen. Most are too comfortable with what they've got. At least if you are Canadian :frown:.

 

[a 1 player]

AND

If the Hydro companies decided to cut off the electricity to all people that did not pay? I think the citizen would suffer first, the hydro company would then just sell more to the States. How long would the food in your fridge last? What about the heat for your house in the winter? I'm afraid we would break long before the Hydro companies.

Regarding the banks... What was this last recession caused by (for a large part)?

I'm afraid it is a no win situation. UNLESS... We all but solar panels and windmills to the extent that we are able to generate our own electricity to be self-sufficient, and do like my grandma did and keep her money under the mattress.

 

[Cycleguy007]

Same goes for utility companies too. If all their customers protested the higher rates by not paying their utility bills just for 2 months, that might put the scare into them......

They'd cut your services long before the 2 month mark I suspect. A couple summers ago, we went on vacation and then the day I got back, I had to go on a 5 day business trip... As luck would have it there was a hydro bill waiting for me in my mail box which I neglected to pay in that period of time. (Mrs. CG doesn't deal with this sorta thing). Anyway, I get back from my biz trip and now I have a RED notice saying if I didn't pay the full balance by the next day, they'd cut my power. WTF? I was only a 10 or 12 days late! :grrrrrr:

I paid the bill at the hydro office the same day, and never made that mistake again... these guys are pretty ruthless about late accounts. :shock:

 

[Butch]

how the US handled the r/e bust

how the US handled the r/e bust

Only Country in the world where the government gives you money for failing. Figure that one out.

 

[tboy]

They'd cut your services long before the 2 month mark I suspect. A couple summers ago, we went on vacation and then the day I got back, I had to go on a 5 day business trip... As luck would have it there was a hydro bill waiting for me in my mail box which I neglected to pay in that period of time. (Mrs. CG doesn't deal with this sorta thing). Anyway, I get back from my biz trip and now I have a RED notice saying if I didn't pay the full balance by the next day, they'd cut my power. WTF? I was only a 10 or 12 days late! :grrrrrr:

I paid the bill at the hydro office the same day, and never made that mistake again... these guys are pretty ruthless about late accounts. :shock:

A couple of questions:

Who is your distributor? Ontario Power Generation doesn't sell direct to customers any longer (I don't think), everything goes through Hydro One, Stratacon etc. Each has their own policies and yes, when I was in toronto Stratacon cut me off after 1 month....

Utilities distributors can't sell to the US, only Ontario Power Generation (or whatever it's name is now) can. Stratacon etc sells electricity it buys from OPG to toronto residents, like Hydro One does to us up North. If we don't pay our bills, and they cut our power, say, if 50% of their customers don't, how are they going to be able to pay for the electricity they HAVE to provide their existing customers? They'll have to borrow from the banks...woops, the banks vaults are empty because everyone took their money out....

See, the thing is, yeah, maybe some food will go bad. Maybe we'll live out of coolers for a while...but do we want to keep getting hosed year after year? I sure don't.....(like hydro one being fined for overcharging interest on late fees then was allowed to increase rates to offset the cost of that fine....wtf???).

BTW: I'm kind of used to being without power....we have power outtages up here all the time....know what? I don't really miss it....I have a genny that I start when I need to take a shower or if the power is out longer than 12 hrs.....

the thing is, I'm getting a little tired of taking it up the ass from politicians, utility providers, and the banks......we talk all the time on here about how bad our representatives are, yet no one ever does anything.