Glen Pizzolorusso's True Story Blog

Who are the Tea Party?

2010-04-17T14:14:00.000-07:00

Who are the Tea Party?

According to the the liberal media outlets and small minded pollsters on the left, they are, fifty plus, white, well educated men. But what is the reality of the Tea Party? I am 32, I am white, self educated, and no I am not a racist. With any group, especially one gaining so much momentum in our country, you have a radical element. Let's equate this element to groups like codepink.org, the liberal left's anti-war crazies who tried to perform a citizens arrest on Karl Rove recently. Does code pink represent the democratic party? Hardly. The Tea Party is not interested in forming a third party to split votes away from the GOP.

Here is what the Tea Party Movement is about:

We are a concerned group of voters, many of my friends are joining, and we are all mid 20's to mid 30's. We are against runaway government spending and we are standing up to place fiscal conservatives in office. THAT'S IS! WE WERE SLEEPING WHILE BUSH WAS PRESIDENT! PERIOD!

We are not anti government! No we do not subscribe to the naivete that this country would be better with no federal government. We respect the brilliance of our Founders and wish to return this country to a place where hard work is rewarded with prosperity.

For more info go to www.teapartypatriots.org

FACEBOOK :: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/32nd-District-Tea-Party-Patriots/117004024981792

Abortion, Morality, God and Our Country.

2009-11-14T09:47:00.001-08:00

It has been a heated debate since the founding of our country, whether or not we are a "Christian Nation." Our president emphatically decrees we are not. Many of the Founding Fathers were in a fact believers in God. Historians like to say they were Deists, Ben franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and Goerge Washington, but that is a sad distortion of truth. A deist believes in a supernatural power, creation that opposes evolution, and belief in one God in whom, through His supreme power, everything exists. After close examination of our founders writings, who this supreme being, this Deity is, becomes overwhelmingly clear. The God of Abraham, the Jewish God, and subsequently (or not depending on your faith) the Father of Jesus Christ.

But it is also crucial to point out that our founders witnessed great crimes of humanity at the hands of humans, in the name of God. They witnessed a Church grow to size and power that rivaled the kings and queens of the day. They looked on as puritans ostracized others of similar yet not exact faith, and this, they believed was enough to make a distinct separation between the realm of God and the realm of men. So while the answer to "Is America a Christian Nation?" a resounding no, that does not dismiss us as a nation without morals.

The founding fathers battled with morality as well. Slavery was an issue that divided the nation prior to its infancy, throughout its infancy, and for decades thereafter. While viewed morally wrong by many, it was, in the end viewed as a topic left to the states to decide. If we choose not to return to the vision of balance of power laid out by our founders we must act federally to preserve morality.

In this fast paced media age we often take the path of least resistance, I myself have been guily, when it comes to moral issues. I often equated the right to choose with time honored traditions of American Freedom. But this is a path of least resistance. And here exists a battle that needs to be fought by all of integrity who choose to stand up for the morals of our nation.

With the many advances in science, the liberal base in this country finds new ways to dispute religion, although unsuccessfully disproving the existence of God. They push on with a charge towards strict teaching of evolution and abolishment of any religious teachings. But this two sided sword will come back to cut those who use its arguments. The invention of 3D embryonic imaging, looking at a computer monitor and seeing an unborn child's pulsing heart, has begun to leave little room for debate over the existence of life prior to birth. And so science appears to be ending a long held debate over life. Life exists at conception by all scientific definitions of the term. So to be scientific about the issue, leaving religion out, abortion is the killing of life.

Are you kidding me?

2009-11-07T12:40:00.001-08:00

I received this in an email from a friend in California, apparently they are taking notes on how not to get re-elected!

"Nothing else needs to be said. This is one of their THREE DAY WORK WEEKS that we all pay for. I am ready to start from the beginning by voting out all elected officials and not letting any of them stay in office for more than two terms. No more lifelong healthcare, retirement, voting in their own pay raises, taking perks on our taxes, etc.

House Minority Leader Lawrence F. Cafero Jr., R-Norwalk, pictured standing, far right, speaks while colleagues Rep. Barbara Lambert, D-Milford and Rep. Jack F. Hennessy, D-Bridgeport, play solitaire Monday night as the House convened to vote on a new budget. (AP)

The guy sitting in the row in front of these two... he's on Facebook, and the guy behind Hennessy is checking out the baseball scores.

These are the folks that can't get the budget out by Oct. 1, Seriously!!!
So, we’ve got a 30 day budget extension. Well, guess what, 30 days from now we will be in the same boat. I guess this makes it easy for the news ‘reporters’ as all they have to do is recycle the same headlines from this week and from 2 years ago. And these yo-yo’s will still be playing SOLITAIRE!!"

Just Another Racist..... (according to the Left)

2009-10-31T19:40:00.000-07:00

This is by Thomas Sowell, wiki him

I have noted that many elected officials, both Democrats and Republicans, called upon America to unite behind Obama.

Well, I want to make it clear to all who will listen that I "AM NOT" uniting behind Obama. However, I promise to give our country the devoted loyalty of a patriot.

I will respect the Office which he holds, and I will acknowledge his abilities as an orator and wordsmith and pray for him, BUT that is it.

I have begun today to see what I can do to make sure he is a one-term President!

Why am I doing this? It is because I do not share Obama's vision or value system for America;

I do not share his Abortion beliefs;

I do not share his radical Marxist's concept of re-distributing wealth;

I do not share his stated views on raising taxes on those who make $150,000+ (the ceiling has been changed three times since August);

I do not share his view that America is arrogant;

I do not share his view that America is not a Christian Nation;

I do not share his view that the military should be reduced by 25%;

I do not share his view of amnesty and giving more to illegals than American Citizens who need help;

I do not share his views on homosexuality and his definition of marriage;

I do not share his views that Radical Islam is our friend and Israel is our enemy who should give up any land;

I do not share his spiritual beliefs (at least the ones he has made public);

I do not share his beliefs on how to re-work the healthcare system in America ;

I do not share his Strategic views of the Middle East, and certainly do not share his plan to sit down with terrorist regimes such as Iran .

Bottom line, my America is vastly different from Obama's, and I have a higher obligation to my Country and my God to do what is right!

For eight (8) years, the Liberals in our Society, led by numerous entertainers who would have no platform and no real credibility, but for their celebrity status, have attacked President Bush, his family, and his spiritual beliefs!

They have not moved toward the center in their beliefs and their philosophies, and they never came together nor compromised their personal beliefs for the betterment of our Country! They have portrayed my America as a land where everything is tolerated except being intolerant!

They have been a vocal and irreverent minority for years;

They have mocked and attacked the very core values so important to the founding and growth of our Country;

They have made every effort to remove the name of God or Jesus Christ from our Society;

They have challenged capital punishment, the right to bear firearms, and the most basic principles of our criminal code;

They have attacked one of the most fundamental of all Freedoms, the right of free speech!

Unite behind Obama? Never!

I am sure many of you who read this think that I am going overboard, but I refuse to retreat one more inch in favor of those whom I believe are the embodiment of Evil!

PRESIDENT BUSH made many mistakes during his Presidency, and I am not sure how history will judge him. However, I believe he weighed his decisions in light of the long established Judeo-Christian principles of our Founding Fathers!!!

Majority rules in America , and I will honor the concept; however, I will fight with all of my power to be a voice in opposition to Obama and "his goals for America ."

I am going to be a thorn in the side of those who, if left unchecked, will destroy our country! Any more compromise is more defeat!

I pray that the results of this election will wake up many who have sat on the sidelines and allowed the Socialist-Marxist anti-God crowd to slowly change so much of what has been good in America !

"Error of opinion may be tolerated where reason is left free to combat it." (Thomas Jefferson)

God bless you and God bless our Country!!!

Breaking up a monopoly!

2009-10-24T22:31:00.000-07:00

A Must Read!

http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/columnists/story.html?id=02859c06-69a3-45f1-a321-dff7755d2de8

The continual erosion of our Constitution

2009-10-07T05:48:00.000-07:00

As I continue to study the history of our great country, I am continually disgusted by the erosion of our Constitution. As with our tax laws we have become experts at finding loop holes. This needs to stop. "Well Bush did it" is no longer a valid excuse, and I believe in time we will see that, Mr. Bush made some foolish choices for political reasons. But we must also as a nation look at the previous four administrations, and the damage they did as well. It's time to put politics aside and focus on the issues that are important to America, our economy and our safety. We need to stop looking the other way as Corporate America rapes our middle class in the name of capitalism, and stop allowing special interest groups to dictate our military policy.
As far as our tax policy, our Founders made it very clear that we should all be taxed at the same rate. They also made a sharp distinction between groups with money and power and individual rights. You can not tax the individual who makes the most money more than the individual who makes the least, but you ABSOLUTELY can tax the corporations at higher levels and allow the corporate boards figure out how to increase profit. I would be inclined to believe that a reduction in bonus salary would be the result. This policy allows the free markets to regulate income and not the government, but constitutionally accomplishes the same goal of increased tax revenue.
As far as the War in Afghanistan, our generals are military experts, allowing people like Nancy Pelosi or our Vice President to advise our President in any way is dangerous. What experience do they have? Do we go to an auto mechanic to find out whats wrong with our cars and then let the local barber advise us on how to fix it ourselves? We have two options, give our generals the troops they need to do their job, or pull out and use the troops to secure our borders and cities. The same way Michael Moore hates capitalism, the nations that have not been blessed with wealth hate the United States, this will never change regardless of the charisma of our leaders.

A very short summary of the events leading to the Mortgage Crisis.

2009-09-29T10:53:00.000-07:00

As promised, I will take a few minutes and briefly walk you through the financial mess, as it pertained to the “Sub-Prime” mortgage industry, as well as the prime mortgage industry and Wall Street. My hopes in writing this are to make everyone aware of the systemic risk that still lurks around every investment portfolio, every blue collar pay check, and every welfare payment out there. To really understand how this happened we must travel back to 1977. The Carter administration had passed a law called “The Community Re-investment Act of 1977”. Carter was under pressure to pass a law that forced banks to lend in certain areas that were extremely high risk. The term they used for banks refusing to lend in areas where foreclosure and fraud were the norm was “redlining.” This was the start of the sub-prime industry (although it didn’t materialize until a decade and a half later).

Now fast forward through Reganomics, and the push for deregulation. The notion of Free Market Capitalism was sweeping the nation due to the policies of the Regan administration. Under the Clinton Administration the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) increasingly put pressure on Fannie Mae (FNMA) to increase its purchase of Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) securities from approximately $7 billion to over $20 billion annually, almost 50% of its annual security purchases. In 1999, The Graham-Leach-Bliley Act or Securities Modernization Act was passed by President Clinton. This act allowed banks to compete in the financial industry and vice versa. Now Wall Street could gain access to FNMA, FHLMC, GNMA securities among other “high return/low risk” investments.

Now enter the sub prime lenders. It was late 2000 and companies were trying to institute ways to increase lending to low and moderate income individuals. One of the ways of doing this was to loosen the guidelines on stated loans. A stated loan is a loan originally created for self employed individuals who write off a majority of their taxable income and report to the IRS, a low Gross Adjusted Income. By looking at their credit score and judging by the assets they had in the bank, the risk of high debt to income ratios was reduced. For example a self employed individual who took in 150k in income but had substantial business “expenditures” an only reported 75k in gross income, may have a debt to income ratio of 65-70% when in reality, had the business owner not written off as much income the ratio would be lower. Looking at the credit score (680-720 was the US average FICO score at the time representing a strong ability to repay) and the amount of money the borrower had in the bank (typically 3 months of principal interest taxes and insurance or more) the bank would allow the borrower to “state” 150k on their loan application.

After the events on September 11, 2001 Alan Greenspan lowered the Fed Funds rate to 1% (meaning if you invest in US Treasury Bonds you could expect a meager 1% return). The global economy needed a new market to invest trillions of dollars. The sub-prime mortgage companies, the rating agencies that were rating their securities, and Wall Street had a product that global investors would fall in love with. There were decades worth of data that said “If the fico score is X and the Loan to Value is Y, then the likely hood of repayment is Z” Now take this to a market that is commonly exposed to risk and tell them you are going to pay 4-7% on their money with little or no additional risk. It was a dream come true for investors. They poured more money into the US Mortgage markets, and therefore created an economy that was sustained purely by real estate. If not real estate what was fueling the post 9/11 economy?

This “thriving” economy created a natural sense of competition between mortgage lenders, pushing the envelope of lending, while maintaining the average default rates became the norm. New and more aggressive products were developed, such as option arms, interest only loans and No Documentation requirements. The rating agencies, however, were still telling Wall Street that these bonds were performing when in fact there was not sufficient data to accurately report on. Everyone was under the impression that housing prices would continue to rise, and if they did we would have little to no issues. It was similar to Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, but legal. If the home prices keep going up, people will naturally refinance, payoff debt and get out of their exotic loan prior to its payments having financial consequences on them.

Slowly, residential home values began to fall. The rating agencies that once held companies like Lehman Brothers and Bears Stearns in high esteem, turned their back and down graded their ratings from AAA to near junk bond levels. This instantly forced the global economy to stop pouring money into these companies and eventually sucking the life out of the mortgage market. The people who needed to refinance their current mortgage to avoid payment adjustments could not find a mortgage. Panic and crisis ensued. This is an extremely shortened version of what happened but hopefully it paints a clear picture.

Addressing the vilification of anyone who was involved in the mortgage industry at this time is challenging. People were all doing jobs and were employed to do so. Analysts looked at numbers and reported on numbers. Wall Street looked at profits and reported on profits. Mortgage Banks looked at default rates and lent in respect to minimizing defaults. Sales people, such as myself, sold products we were given. Home owners took out loans to refinance or purchase houses. That is it, no conspiracy, no criminal intent, a cycle that had little or no regulation that spun out of control. Now as stated before, as in any industry, there were scammers. I receive phone calls from “government specialists who can give me stimulus money to lower my monthly debt payments” I hear of kidney dialysis institutions not informing their patients about transplant opportunities to keep the Medicaid payments coming, lawyers who say they can win your case but insist you pay them a $5,000.00 retainer. Scammers are everywhere. To single out everyone and suggest they are criminals requires a lack of understanding or plain ignorance. There were mortgage brokers who lied to borrowers for profit, there were borrowers who forged documents to accelerate approval, and there were appraisers who inflated home values to aid brokers. At every step of the process there were con men, as in any industry a small percentage of fraud is expected.

So how do we prevent this? The answer is actually simple. It was written in a book that was featured on Saturday Night Live, titled “Don’t buy stuff you cannot afford”

http://www.hulu.com/watch/1389/saturday-night-live-dont-buy-stuff

Now let me be clear, this is not the only factor to prevent future economic crisis’. We need reform on Wall Street, reform of lending laws, reform on Real Estate agents practices and in many other areas. It would take a book to underline all the holes that need to be filled to prevent future economic crisis. But let’s first examine our spending habits, the purchase of many items in our life on credit. Credit is what created this bubble. Americans have gotten themselves into the practice of financing everything we buy instead of saving for purchases. I am sure I missed some key facts or haven’t clearly explained every issue I touch upon. So please when replying to this post, offer criticism that can be translated into action. Any defamatory comments will be removed. Let’s talk about the issues that led up to the crisis and hopefully we can work to make America a better place for our children.

This American Life on NPR

2009-09-28T16:14:00.002-07:00

Hear a recent feature on NPR's This American Life, the original episonde I did spawned this blog as well as NPR's Planet Money Blog.

http://thislife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?episode=390

NPR Planet Money Blog

2009-09-28T16:14:00.001-07:00

http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2009/09/subprime_guy_loses_everything.html#more

A Giant Pool of Money Follow Up Part 1

2009-09-24T08:49:00.000-07:00

http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2009/09/podcast_giant_pool_of_money_wh.html#more

Fair Tax Pros and Cons

2009-09-23T17:03:00.000-07:00

Here is a compilation of the intelligent point counter point I have found on the Fair Tax:

There is so much out there so if you see a good article that offers pros and cons please post as a reply!

http://www.karlonia.com/2007/04/16/fair-tax-pros-and-cons/

http://geekpolitics.com/10-pros-and-cons-of-the-fair-tax/

http://www.thelandofthefree.net/conservativepoliticalopinion/fairtax.html

http://bearcreekledger.com/2006/07/19/pros-and-cons-between-federal-fair-tax-income-tax-and-flat-tax/

The lie that is Capitalism!

2009-09-22T08:13:00.001-07:00

I think it’s important to establish first that I am a Conservative Christian Republican although some of my views here are contrary to my party’s ideology. I do although support true capitalism, but true capitalism in America does not exist and we need to take drastic measures to realign the country with the dream our founding fathers had.

I grew up with a great respect for free markets and this notion of Laissez-Faire economics. I was a product of Corporate America and truly believed that we are the America we are because of these principles. Oh how sadly I have been misled. First lets address the context to which Adam Smith described “the invisible hand” and Laissez-Faire Economics. If you do not know the term Laissez-Faire its literal translation is “let the business alone,” a philosophy that free markets will always regulate themselves. While this is a brilliant concept it has been grossly distorted through the eyes of Corporate America. Regan’s trickle down economics started a landslide of Corporate Power and I would have to argue that Corporate America has become a Monarch, reigning over all the power and all the money, making it harder and harder for middle class Americans to voice their hopes and dreams.

When Smith coined this concept it was in direct relationship to local business, that a localized community would regulate supply and demand. Unfortunately it has been the catalyst of income concentration to a minute percentage of the US population, and many middle class Americans do not understand the concepts they so rigidly fight to uphold, myself formally one of them. Bruce Judson does a phenomenal job at walking you through history in his book titled “It can happen here, America on the Brink.” A society can not sustain without a middle class, and we have allowed the weakening of Unions, and the creation of a greed machine called Wall St. to erode this middle class.

Wall St. operates on one factor, profit at all costs, CEO’s being rewarded for layoffs and cost cutting as long as profit was achieved. An obscene example of this was something that I previously supported. I, as did many, said that the AIG bonuses were guaranteed to the AIG executives, and that in the name of capitalism and free markets the government should not take away their bonuses. What a naïve thought! Had the government not bailed out these banks would they have still received their bonuses? Possibly from the bankruptcy judge but even that is debatable. Wall St. has been rewarded for helping destroy the economy of our country. I helped and so did you, were we rewarded? While I do now support the stimulus ( I didn’t prior to understanding our history and where we are as a country), I think that we need heavy government regulation on the banking sector. We need to ensure that people, not profit, are considered when making crucial decisions concerning corporations.
I believe that federal government involvement should be minimal in a healthy society, with laws set up to protect its people and not their bank accounts.

The key word is healthy, America is by no means healthy, we have four out of five factors present prior to every major revolution in history (Judson 2009). The free markets have failed and now if we do not realize the necessity of government intervention, we set our president up to fail and in turn our country. A month ago I would have debated FDR’s role in history, but after hours of reading and research I think he was one of the greatest leaders we have had. He was a true leader, not afraid to say he didn’t have all the answers.

Americans are looking for a quick fix and that does not exist. If anyone tells you they have the answer they are either lying or mis-informed. I wish our president would step up to the plate and let everyone know that its going to be a rough road ahead. Stop telling us jobs will improve in 3-6 months when all economic indicators point the other way, and tell us he doesn’t have all the answers. Tell us he will work to restore the middle class at the expense of corporate America and I will stand up and support his decisions.

A dichotomy of success; then and now

2009-09-22T07:03:00.000-07:00

I see a Porsche convertible drive by, sky blue, tan leather interior, gorgeous, and immediately a feeling of envy comes over me. I think that's a natural feeling, but I can't help wondering what is the motivation behind the purchase of such an expensive piece of machinery. Is it a burning desire to own the pinnacle of German automobile engineering? Is it a love for speed, wind blowing in your face, freed from the perils of Corporate America? Or is it a symbol of success, a long career, countless promotions, 60-hour workweeks, a remedy for the stress that accompanies such dedication?

For me, it was all of the above. After seven long years of 60+ hours a week in the subprime mortgage industry, I had achieved what I had set out to accomplish: success.

I was a success, with a seven-figure income, a healthy portfolio of real estate, a gorgeous wife, fancy cars, a Madison Avenue wardrobe. I was the envy of others, my yellow 911 a testament to my success. You see, I grew up in an affluent community. Our neighbors were doctors and lawyers with kids who went to private schools. Money and status defined success for me, and by my definition, success was all around. Now I was worthy to take part in its communion.

Then I lost everything. I became a victim of the financial mess I had helped to create. My houses, gone. Cars, gone. Bank account, gone. Success, gone. How could this happen? This wasn't the story you see on TV. This wasn't supposed to happen. The success I had sacrificed so much of who I was to achieve simply disappeared. In the weeks and months following the financial crash I went from highly employable to another "subprime" guy looking for work. Many companies specified not to apply if you had "subprime" experience.

These have been the worst months of my life, and oddly enough, so far, these same months also have been the best. I watched as my healthy bank account slowly evaporated, the repos and foreclosures started and my claim for unemployment benefits got denied. It was a downward spiral ending in financial ruin.

I should have been terrified, but for some reason I was calm, collected, happy even. The enormous cloud of uncertainty was slowly disappearing and allowing the sun to shine in on my life.

I began to realize the things I had been so naive to overlook: my children, my health, the love of a Godly woman and some of the greatest friends on the planet. I was truly blessed. And the best part of it was this was all free, there for me whether my paycheck had six zeros or two.

I started to think differently about wealth and how I defined success. The dream of success I once had was radically transformed. I was actually ashamed I had earned so much money and the only thing I had to show for it was a handful of pictures. I hadn't helped anyone but myself. I could have done so many positive things with the money I earned, but failed to. I was not a success.

Now that I've been given a second chance, success to me has no monetary value, and it is not something that can be measured by outward appearances. Success is making the best out of what you have been blessed with. It's giving your all despite your circumstances. It's spending the time to teach your children the importance of things such as faith, love, education, and confidence. It is so much more than the shallow emptiness that wealth and material possessions often bring.

I think about an illustration someone shared with me recently. When you finish a game of Monopoly, all the pieces go back in the box, so it really doesn't matter how much of the board you control. Life works the same way. Life is finite, your days numbered. When my days have ended, if one person stands over my grave describing the positive impact I had on their life, my life will have been a success.

An wholesale account executive is not a mortgage broker.

2009-08-03T10:20:00.001-07:00

There have been some misconceptions about what I actually did for the subprime lenders I worked for. Let me clear that up. I WAS NOT A MORTGAGE BROKER. I was an wholesale account executive. I was given a product to sell to the mortgage brokers. I solicited business for the company I worked for.

I was not responsible for filling out ANY paperwork with income on it. I was NOT RESPONSIBLE for underwriting the loans or the underwriting guidelines.

LET ME SAY THIS AGAIN

I was not responsible for filling out ANY paperwork with income on it. I was NOT RESPONSIBLE for underwriting the loans or the underwriting guidelines.

I did a job for a corporation, I did it very well, and I was compensated for it. I was in the top 5% of sales reps in the industry. The average sales rep did not make nearly the amount of money that I did. I was paid an industry standard compensation 37.5 basis points of which I had about 100k in staff salaries monthly.

Apologies?

2009-08-03T09:34:00.001-07:00

So someone recently said that I did not seem apologetic enough [on the NPR interview, or the GQ article], that "NPR is well respected, your words are not edited [although i didnt hear the curses that accidentally slip off my tongue on occasion, so they do a wonderful job of editing], and the tone of your voice on the tape doesn’t sound remorseful, so when you say things were taken out of context it sounds like you are making excuses for what you said. People want to hear that you are sorry. Because of that interview your name got attached to this mortgage crisis, and people are mad about what happened, and they want [someone] to blame, and it’s really hard not to blame someone who is on tape saying what you said to NPR. The stuff you said about the GQ article goes a long way toward showing people that you have changed. Talking about money and charity and what you learned is GREAT.... but you are undermining that sentiment when you try to explain that you put so many people into their homes. People don’t want to hear that you made a lot of successful mortgages, especially since those numbers of foreclosures are far from being final, the source of those numbers isn’t listed, and the number of foreclosed could go way up. People want to hear you say. "I am so sorry thatI participated in this. I won’t ever do that again" People are simple. They are mad. your name is attached to the mortgage crisis."

They want me to apologize for what? for being the best at my job, I am not sorry for this. Nor am I sorry for the amount of successful mortgages I was involved with. I did what YOU do every day, try to be the best at my job. I didn’t create the rules, I was a link in the chain that caused this crisis.

I am sorry that people lost their homes, but if anyone has a finger to point, walk into your bathroom, look in the mirror and point. Take a hard look at what put you in the financial position you are in. I know I have had to do this. We as Americans live in a culture where you think your success is measured by stuff, cars, houses, clothes, schools, etc. That's the "American Dream" We lie to ourselves, rack up debt, make poor financial decisions and then want to point the finger at everyone but the one who is truly responsible. Ourselves! Companies like GE Consumer Finance, NCEN, and the other mortgage lenders teamed up with Wall St., with Congress, WITH YOU, to let you finance "The American Dream" you agreed to pay them back. YOU!

As in every industry there were sharks, abusers, frauds, they swindled people out of their life savings, mortgage brokers, stock brokers, individuals at banks. I do feel bad for these people. As for Joe Plumber (aka Glen Pizzolorusso aka YOU) who racked up so much debt that when housing prices began to fall, he couldn't refinance and stretch the debt out another 30 yrs subsequently losing his home. I don’t feel sorry for them, nor do I feel sorry for myself. Life is about learning, I have learned that cash is king, credit is a terrorist, taking those who partake hostage.

All we can do is educate ourselves to the means that created our ends, and make sure history doesn't repeat itself

NPR Eat your heart out....

2009-07-30T08:40:00.001-07:00

So many of you have heard the NPR interview I did a couple years ago, it was included in Ira Glass and Alex Blumbers's This American Life "Giant pool of money"

They did a good job telling the story but skewed the truth to make a more dramatic story and cast blame in one direction. In fact blame must be pointed in EVERY direction, the lenders sure, wall st, sure, but the blame also must be cast on the Americans who took these loans. Our entire way of life as Americans is measured by money, credit, STUFF. Everyone at every step of the chain was and is to blame. Of course there were a few crooked brokers who swindled people for a profit, but that exists in every industry.

Back to the NPR piece. When I said that people didn’t have a pot to piss in and we were making them loans, it was two years after the market collapse, I was talking candidly with Alex, and reflecting back. It was not a thought we had at the height of the market. We were not making 300 loans a month to people who "didn’t have a pot to piss in" many of the people we made loans to were average Americans who ARE STILL IN THEIR HOMES! Sorry to kill your dramatic spin Alex.

As far as me personally, I am regretful about the way I handled my finances. I allowed the money to consume me, it drove my decisions, many of them poor ones. I spent too much on things I thought would show people my success. I caved in to the "American Dream" BUT I challenge any of you to put yourself in my position and see what happens. You think you can judge me, but unless you have had the experiences I have, you don’t really have a clue.

If you did read the GQ magazine article I was featured in you would have read the REALLY REALLY important part that Alex and NPR left out, what this taught me.

It taught me that success isn’t measured in money, its measured in how you use your money to help others (thanks david wind). Its measured in your everyday relationships with the people who love and care about you. I was out to impress the world, I was deceived by the money. If I make substantial money again I will be far more philanthropic. I have been blessed with something that cannot be taken from me, A faith in Jesus Christ, a beautiful family, and some of the best friends on earth. THAT IS SUCCESS! I have had experiences good and bad that most people will never experience. I have learned a great deal in a short time and am just getting warmed up.

Ahh the media and the way they love to twist things...

2009-07-30T08:30:00.000-07:00

Haha never believe what you read. Alex and Ira did a great job making their case, but didnt really focus on the truth.

Alex Blumberg: Glen had five cars, a 1.5 million dollar vacation house in
Connecticut, and penthouse that he rented in Manhattan. And he made all this
money making very large loans to very poor people with bad credit.

Alex, what about all the rich people i made loans to? and the blue collar workers? they were not ALL to poor people, actually most were to average americans who like myself were not very wise with their personal finances.

Glen Pizzolorusso: We looked at loans. These people didn't have a pot to piss
in. They can barely make a car payment and we're giving them a 300, 400
thousand dollar house.

This is a blatant warping of the information i provided. It was an "after the fact" thought, a year after the crisis started. These were not thoughts we had while we were making the loans. In fact our company was lending based on wall st guidelines.

Alex Blumberg: But Glen didn't worry about whether the loans were good. That's
someone else's problem. And this way of thinking thrived at every step of this
mortgage security chain.

Welcome to my blog

2008-11-07T04:49:00.001-08:00

So i started this blog to voice my opinion about life, my career, politics, religion, and anything else that pops into my mind.

I was a bit concerned about the articles that have been written subsequent to the NPR interview "Giant Pool of Money" some correct some false, ill take some time in my second post to go through the details of my career and what led up to the sub prime mortgage crisis. Ill take a few minutes and combat some of the nonsense that is floating around out there and clarify all your questions.

Speak to you soon!

Glen