Hold on to your pocketbook

The headline in today's WSJ says it all, Worried Bankers Seek to Shift Risk to Uncle Sam.

That the housing market is in serious trouble is no secret, and those high-risk loans are coming back to bite banks hard. Treasury Secretary Paulson predicts that the worst is just beginning", and we may be looking at a continued rise in foreclosures.

Now, like their Savings & Loan predecessors, high-risk lenders are looking for the taxpayer to underwrite their losses. "Shifting risk to Uncle Sam" means that you and I get soaked while irresponsible lenders walk away from the mess, untouched and unaccountable.