Reader comments
Mortgage crisis felt in city halls

Just to be safe, every local government in Utah should raise taxes this year.

Local governments will likely have to raise taxes. I believe a lot of their revenue comes from property taxes. As those values start to dwindle, they'll have to find other sources of revenue.

Don't worry, Funny Money Republicans.

The Federal Reserve will print more money so Daddy Warbucks can throw us all another BBQ!

Greed, money and power are the social ills and will eventually bring this country to its knees. The greed of others always causes injury and harm to the innocent. The fate of this country lies in the hands of a few thousand people who will have the courage to act with integrity and not bow to the pressure of political correctness.

If there's one thing you can count on today it's half-wit liberals finding every available place online to post a message and then blaming Bush for whatever negative thing the story was about.

"Printing Presses" managed to save this thread by blaming Bush for the individual greed of all Americans by claiming that resuming hostilities on Iraq is what caused people to overextend themselves on their houses. Sweet.

The US House of Representatives have the constitutional charge to coin money and regulate the value. The House is currently controlled by the Democrats (as it has for almost every session for the past 50 years.) The Republicans controlled the house from the middle of the Clinton administration to the middle of the Bush administration. They were thrown out because they said they were going to solve the problem but simply followed the Democratic philosophy of Tax and Spend.

So the problem is both Democratic and Republican. That would mean it is our fault. We elected them and we keep pleading with them for handouts. Now we are asking them to bail us out for borrowing more money than we can afford to pay back. This is corporate welfare for private stockholders that will come back to haunt us in the form of a depression type crisis in the future. Get ready.

Paul makes a point. It is greed and greed transcends both parties. It is our fault and it is obvious none of us knows what to do to solve the financial mess we are in.

Unfortunately, in this case, the greed was so pervasive--sellers, buyers, mortgage industry, developers--that all of us will pay the price. Unless, of course, we reward the perpetrators by bailing them out

For years I have been telling everyone I meet that government entities and school districts need to stop going to the bond markets. They need to save and then pay for their projects with cash - NO DEBT is the only way to go. I could not vote for either state treasurer candidate this year as they stated in their campaign materials that one of their main focuses would be on working the debt markets. How foolish are we as citizens when we let our own governments and schools operate on debt? Really foolish, we should be earning interest, not paying it. Now it is coming around to bite us yet again.

It is past time to stop expanding our cities with debt; stop building city-owned recreation centers, golf courses, and swimming pools. Cities must stop trying to make money! Perhaps municipalities are incorporated, but THEY ARE NOT CORPORATIONS! Let the corporations make/lose money. Our municipalities have indebted themselves in their efforts to "make" money; this business of bonding to "attract" businesses will eventually rear its ugly head (what we see now is only the beginning). DO NOT RAISE MY TAXES! Start governing instead of financing.

Re: Anonymous@7:35a.m. "The U.S. House of Representatives have the constitutional charge to coin money and regulate the value."

I wish to make a couple of corrections. First, the Federal Reserve is in total violation of the Constitution. In fact, it isn't at all "federal". It is a conglomerate of private world banks. Secondly, it hasn't a thing to do with whether it's republicians or democrats who are in control. You've been lead to believe there's a two party system. Well, There isn't.

The housing market crunch is only the tip of the iceburg. The elites of this world for many years now, have been making every effort to eliminate the middle class - and they're succeeding.

Lastly, if Israel and/or the U.S., goes to war with Iran, fuel will skyrocket to $10-14 per gallon. Within days, our economy and the world economy will collapse. The sad thing is, the Bush Administration and both houses (democrats and republicans alike)want this war - they couldn't care less about you and I. They and Israel have been accusing and intimidating Iran for months, and it's heating up. So if you think the housing issue is big, wait until we go into Iran!

I do not agree that they should all raise their taxes, because if they do that it is just one more burden to place on the working class people. They never go after the more financially set individuals. With gas prices, groceries, and most everyday living items, going through the roof in price higher taxes could destroy us all. This recession has to end soon or we�ll all be up a creek without a paddle.

Local governments can spend our money better than we can. It's makes sense to let government tax us and spend the money to make sure the money is spent correctly.

Very well-written, down-to-earth article, explaining the economic interconnection of the various parts of our economy. Thanks!

One of the great things about free enterprise is that it works, sometimes with quite hurtful effects, notwithstanding all of our ill-advised emotionalism, paranoia, or political chicanery.

It also has a self-correcting mechansim for dealing with the greedy, the elitists, and the congressional redistributionists. All we need to do is apply a little patience and intelligence in dealing with its ups and downs.

Ordinary people like you and me have the ultimate power over the economy.

To: Jane Citizen, I really hope your comment is dripping with sarcasm. If not . . . Local governments can spend money better than we can? Whose Kool-Aid are you drinking? No one uses my money better than me. To democratize decision making on ways to use my money to entertain the masses is irresponsible and "legalized" theft. It makes sense to let government tax us and spend the money to make sure the money is spent correctly???? Whose definition of correct? Wow. This reasoning is precisely why we are on the verge of the next great depression. Look at the other article in this paper on Sandy City trying to decide whether to expand their Rec Center. They've got about 7 million and need 20 million. So, the answer to Sandy City is DON'T DO IT. If you do not have the money to spend, don't spend it!

They are called auction rate securities. Long term investments turned into short term securities by the fancy schooled geniuses on wall street. They are not panning out either just like the exotic mortgaqge junk that is causing so much losses and financial heartburn. An unregulated wall street has really put the screws to our economy. Many 401K's are now 201K's.

If you think you own your own home, just don't pay your taxes, you will find out who really owns your home! I don't feel a bit sorry for "City Hall". We are supposed to cut back and live on less and less, why can't City Hall?