The Canadian Record (Canadian, Tex.), Vol. 119, No. 46, Ed. 1 Thursday, November 12, 2009 Page: 4 of 40
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THURSDAY 1 2 NOVEMBER 2DD9
THE CANADIAN RECORD
Breaking up? Hard to do.
By Robin L. Mitchell
DEAR BANK OF AMERICA,
Our relationship is over. I'm done with you. Although this has been a long-term kind of
thing—10 years give or take, it's just not working for me any longer. Frankly, you haven't
really held up your end of things.
In addition, recent events have convinced me that there is either someone better out
there or—when it comes down to it—there are worse things than being alone. Alone,
that is, away from megalithic, narcissistic, incompetent banking institutions that take
and take and, n the end, could care less about me.
Let's look at our history together. From the beginning the rules have pretty well
been spelled out...in large type and tiny fine print on the pages of contractual obligations
requiring a signature before we could become an "item."
But that was okay. It worked for both of us. I used your little plastic card and you
collected a substantial fee from businesses who accepted credit cards as a way of doing
business. You, of course, preferred that I carry a balance, but an accounting class
emphasizing the evils of compound nterest convinced me to pay off that pesky balance
monthly.
But hey, while you were making money off the merchants, I was enjoying a non-
checkbook-carrying convenience and avoiding interrogations about the quality of my
identification. Win/win, right? Then everything changed. You lied.
I think it was greed. Usurious interest rates just weren't quite enough for you. Not
when there were questionable mortgages with almost-hidden rate adjustments peddled
by loan officers paid on a volume basis. Not when those mortgages could be foisted off on
the public who bought into the idea that home ownership is, indeed, the American Dream
and swallowed the myth that real estate values travel only in one direction.
And don't get me started on some of your 'friends'—guys like former Texas Senator
Phil Gramm, who never met a bank regulation that he couldn't dismantle.
Passbook savings accounts that encouraged consumers to save and paid a fairly
paltry 5.25% interest, but still provided a bit of incentive—gone. Adequate capi talization
requirements for financial institutions saving them from their own worst instincts—
deleted. Time-tested and true division between the banking institutions charged with
protecting deposits and the free-wheeling, high-flying investment banks who never met
a risk they wouldn't take—history.
These guys were not your friends, BOA.
So it turns out that—like Icarus—home values and marginal mortgages flew too close
to the sun, got burned and fell to earth. Turns out you bankers with fancy Ivy-League
degrees and initials following your names like MBA and CFP, with careers worth of
experience at firms with stellar names, and with long histories and revered places among
the money-ista's, don't really know any more than the guys on Main Street. You are as
susceptible to mismanagement, misjudgment and fallibility as anyone.
Who knew? Well, now we all do. The events of the last two years have pulled back the
curtain and exposed the Wizards of Wall Street as gray-haired, middle-aged, white guys
who might have as much of a clue as the rest of us on a good day, and who, on a bad day,
have no clue at all. Aid boy, have there been some bad days lately.
I expected you to do your job: assess risk, make informed character judgements about
borrowers and safeguard the assets placed in your vaults. You failed at all those tasks.
You cheated.
You didn't think I would notice that you took $45 billion of my and other folks' tax
dollars to save your sorry self from bankruptcy and death, and then turned around and
wouldn't loan it to the very same people and busi ness owners who needed it to jumpstart
this country's economy? That you would decide instead to invest it in Treasury Notes
and bills while continuing to pay yourself outrageous salaries and "bonuses," like you had
done a job that n some alternate universe deserved compensation unimaginable to the
rest of us mere mortals. Are you kidding me?
Adding insult to injury, you changed the rules of our "relationship." Faced with
Congressionally-mandated limits 011 what you can do with credit card terms and
conditions that take effect in February, you snuck !n outrageous interest rate hikes on
existing balances. On Monday, the Federal Reserve reported that 50# of banks surveyed
said they were increasing rates and reducing credit lines 011 borrowers with good credit
scores. About 401? said they were imposing higher fees, demanding higher minimum
credit scores and tightening other requirements. Nice.
Your customers bailed you out. In return, you turned around and hosed them. That's
gratitude. In conclusion, you're an idiot. We're through and, on second thought, breaking
up isn't really that hard to do.
State Gap tal
High ights
By Ed Sterling
TIMS PRESS ASSOCIATION
AUSTIN—A November 5 mass shooting at Fort
Hood, about 60 miles north of the capital city, re-
sulted in the deaths of one civilian, 12 soldiers and
the wounding of 30 others.
Ma Nidal Malik Hasan, 39, a U.S. Army psy-
chiatrist, was identified, as the shooter. Civilian
police officers Kimberly Munley and Mark Todd
returned fire, stopping Hasan. Hasan received
first aid on the spot and was transported to a
hospital for treatment. Hasan was on the staff of
Darnall Army Medical Center at Fort Hood. He
was preparing for deployment to Afghanistan.
Gov. Rick Perry issued this statement 011 Nov.
5: "The Texas family suffered a significant loss
today with the tragedy at Fort Hood. Along with
all Texans, Anita and I are keeping those affected
by today's incidents in our thoughts and prayers....
To honor those who lost their lives today, I have
ordered that all Texas flags be lowered to half-
staff until Sunday, and ask all Texans to pray for
the victims, their families and the extended Fort
Hood community"
Perry directed the deployment of a variety of
state resources to Fort Hood, including Texas
Department of Public Safety troopers, Texas
Rangers and helicopters, to assist.
The governor's flag order applied to all United
States and Texas flags under the control of the
state. Flags were ordered to be lowered to half-
staff on the Capitol building, flag displays in the
Capitol Complex, and upon all public buildings,
grounds and facilities beginning immediately
until sunset on Sunday, November 8.
Individuals, businesses, municipalities,
counties and other political subdivisions were
encouraged to fly the flag at half-staff for the
same length of time as a sign of respect.
Jury convicts YFZ ranch member
A Schleicher County jury on Nov. 5 convicted
Raymond M. Jessop of the Yearning For Zion
ranch near Eldorado on charges of sexual assault
of a child. He faces a 20-year prison sentence.
A state and federal raid on the ranch last spring
resulted 11 the removal and temporary protective
placement of more than 400 women and children
who resided there.
The ranch is owned by a religious sect, the
Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter
Day Saints, which broke away from the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints beginning in
the 1890s.
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Brown, Laurie Ezzell. The Canadian Record (Canadian, Tex.), Vol. 119, No. 46, Ed. 1 Thursday, November 12, 2009, newspaper, November 12, 2009; Canadian, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth252775/m1/4/?q=music: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Hemphill County Library.