Web Letters: More Mortgage Madness

Wright misses a major part of this story: Why did the Gallons get a loan from Option One? Under what terms? Was it a cash-out refinance? Did they have a stated income loan with no money down to purchase their home? There is a reason they had a subprime loan--most likely a poor credit history showing they did not pay their credit obligations on time in the past. Wright only tells the end of the story so he can show the banks in a bad light; somehow this is supposed to make the family a sympathetic victim of the big bad lender. Telling the whole story, however, may show that the Gallons are in the exact position they should be in, losing a home they never should have bought or losing a home because they have pulled out equity and spent it. What's the whole story?

Dennis C. Smith

Long Beach, CA

I have been renting for thirty years because I couldn't afford a house. It was evident that I still could not afford a home in the area I wanted to live, no matter what the fancy loans offered between 2002 and 2007. It's simple: I looked at my salary and I looked at the price of homes. No need to read any loan document. So guess what, I didn't buy a house.

So now, according to this article, it is my moral obligation to subsidize with my falling 401[k] and taxes not only Wall Street insanity but also consumer buying insanity.

Bailing out people who bought what they could not afford is no different than bailing out the financial institutions who destroyed a whole economy because of their greed.

Please, enough with the "victim" model of looking at life. Why is it always the fault of others? When will Democrats and Republicans, liberals and conservatives finally mature beyond pointing the finger at each other?

There is no they or them responsible for my misery. There is only "we," and it is only when we look at ourselves and take responsibility for our own lives that the planet will heal.

Chris Jones

Los Angeles, CA

Just goes to show that when you deal with financial guys you are dealing with crooks. Before signanything, get a lawyer to look at it.

Paul Citro

Fprt Lauderdale, FL