Would the Last Honest Reporter Please Turn On the Lights?

An editorial from a Democrat from the far left of the country gets it. This is a great read and a breath of fresh air to read an honest and open viewpoint on the housing crisis and the state of journalism in the United States. I think it is important to remember that with an Obama election combined with a Pelosi controlled blank check Congress we are going to be faced with the resurrection of the Fairness Doctrine. That will only continue to erode the media and expand Government's influence on our media.

His article first appeared in The Rhinoceros Times of Greensboro, North Carolina.

Please click the link above to read more about Scott Card and the Meridian website.

Excerpts:

An open letter to the local daily paper — almost every local daily paper in America:

I remember reading All the President's Men and thinking: That's journalism. You do what it takes to get the truth and you lay it before the public, because the public has a right to know.

This housing crisis didn't come out of nowhere. It was not a vague emanation of the evil Bush administration.

It was a direct result of the political decision, back in the late 1990s, to loosen the rules of lending so that home loans would be more accessible to poor people. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were authorized to approve risky loans.

What is a risky loan? It's a loan that the recipient is likely not to be able to repay.

The goal of this rule change was to help the poor — which especially would help members of minority groups. But how does it help these people to give them a loan that they can't repay? They get into a house, yes, but when they can't make the payments, they lose the house — along with their credit rating.

They end up worse off than before.

This was completely foreseeable and in fact many people did foresee it. One political party, in Congress and in the executive branch, tried repeatedly to tighten up the rules. The other party blocked every such attempt and tried to loosen them.

Read the rest by clicking the title above.

Photo Credit: Bob Henderson, Henderson Photography, Inc.