John McCain - 10 things to know about him

[funjumper101 15]

Good info from Moveon.org. I look forward to the righties interpretation of this info. The sources for the statements are provided. Read them for yourself and see what you think. Let us not forget that McCain is also highly biased AGAINST general aviation. Do you want your DZ to close or your jump tickets price to skyrocket?

10 things you should know about John McCain (but probably don't):

1. John McCain voted against establishing a national holiday in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Now he says his position has "evolved," yet he's continued to oppose key civil rights laws.1

2. According to Bloomberg News, McCain is more hawkish than Bush on Iraq, Russia and China. Conservative columnist Pat Buchanan says McCain "will make Cheney look like Gandhi."2

3. His reputation is built on his opposition to torture, but McCain voted against a bill to ban waterboarding, and then applauded President Bush for vetoing that ban.3

4. McCain opposes a woman's right to choose. He said, "I do not support Roe versus Wade. It should be overturned."4

5. The Children's Defense Fund rated McCain as the worst senator in Congress for children. He voted against the children's health care bill last year, then defended Bush's veto of the bill.5

6. He's one of the richest people in a Senate filled with millionaires. The Associated Press reports he and his wife own at least eight homes! Yet McCain says the solution to the housing crisis is for people facing foreclosure to get a "second job" and skip their vacations.6

7. Many of McCain's fellow Republican senators say he's too reckless to be commander in chief. One Republican senator said: "The thought of his being president sends a cold chill down my spine. He's erratic. He's hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me."7

8. McCain talks a lot about taking on special interests, but his campaign manager and top advisers are actually lobbyists. The government watchdog group Public Citizen says McCain has 59 lobbyists raising money for his campaign, more than any of the other presidential candidates.8

9. McCain has sought closer ties to the extreme religious right in recent years. The pastor McCain calls his "spiritual guide," Rod Parsley, believes America's founding mission is to destroy Islam, which he calls a "false religion." McCain sought the political support of right-wing preacher John Hagee, who believes Hurricane Katrina was God's punishment for gay rights and called the Catholic Church "the Antichrist" and a "false cult."9

10. He positions himself as pro-environment, but he scored a 0—yes, zero—from the League of Conservation Voters last year.10

Sources:
1. "The Complicated History of John McCain and MLK Day," ABC News, April 3, 2008
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/04/the-complicated.html
"McCain Facts," ColorOfChange.org, April 4, 2008
http://colorofchange.org/mccain_facts/
2. "McCain More Hawkish Than Bush on Russia, China, Iraq," Bloomberg News, March 12, 2008
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aF28rSCtk0ZM&refer=us
"Buchanan: John McCain 'Will Make Cheney Look Like Gandhi,'" ThinkProgress, February 6, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/06/buchanan-gandhi-mccain/
3. "McCain Sides With Bush On Torture Again, Supports Veto Of Anti-Waterboarding Bill," ThinkProgress, February 20, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/20/mccain-torture-veto/

4. "McCain says Roe v. Wade should be overturned," MSNBC, February 18, 2007
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17222147/
5. "2007 Children's Defense Fund Action Council® Nonpartisan Congressional Scorecard," February 2008
http://www.childrensdefense.org/site/PageServer?pagename=act_learn_scorecard2007
"McCain: Bush right to veto kids health insurance expansion," CNN, October 3, 2007
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/10/03/mccain.interview/
6. "Beer Executive Could Be Next First Lady," Associated Press, April 3, 2008
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h-S1sWHm0tchtdMP5LcLywg5ZtMgD8VQ86M80
"McCain Says Bank Bailout Should End `Systemic Risk,'" Bloomberg News, March 25, 2008
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aHMiDVYaXZFM&refer=home
7. "Will McCain's Temper Be a Liability?," Associated Press, February 16, 2008
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=4301022
"Famed McCain temper is tamed," Boston Globe, January 27, 2008
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/01/27/famed_mccain_temper_is_tamed/
8. "Black Claims McCain's Campaign Is Above Lobbyist Influence: 'I Don't Know What The Criticism Is,'" ThinkProgress, April 2, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/04/02/mccain-black-lobbyist/
"McCain's Lobbyist Friends Rally 'Round Their Man," ABC News, January 29, 2008
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=4210251
9. "McCain's Spiritual Guide: Destroy Islam," Mother Jones Magazine, March 12, 2008
http://www.motherjones.com/washington_dispatch/2008/03/john-mccain-rod-parsley-spiritual-guide.html
"Will McCain Specifically 'Repudiate' Hagee's Anti-Gay Comments?," ThinkProgress, March 12, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/03/12/mccain-hagee-anti-gay/
"McCain 'Very Honored' By Support Of Pastor Preaching 'End-Time Confrontation With Iran,'" ThinkProgress, February 28, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/28/hagee-mccain-endorsement/

10. "John McCain Gets a Zero Rating for His Environmental Record," Sierra Club, February 28, 2008
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/environment/77913/

[quade 3]

Meh . . .

Against Hillary he still wins.

Against Obama it's an interesting contest.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[GQ_jumper 4]

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Against Hillary he still wins.

Agreed

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Against Obama it's an interesting contest.

I think against Obama he has head start, Hillary is trying to pick Obama apart in her campaign and Obama is losing some of his "Golden Boy" luster in his counter-attacks against Hillary. Not to mention hw many times he's taken shots directly at McCain and then issued a quick politicians apology. Meanwhile McCain is sitting on the sidelines watching those two drag each other down and coming out on top every time they take pop shots at each other or him. The Dems are beating themselves in this election.

History does not long entrust the care of freedom to the weak or the timid.
--Dwight D. Eisenhower

[funjumper101 15]

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Meh . . .

Against Hillary he still wins.

Against Obama it's an interesting contest.

What the polls say now is completely meaningless. Take a look at past elections.

Once the Dem nominee is selected, the real campaign will begin. I hope that the Dems can do an effective job of exposing how erratic and scary McCain is. It should be enough to make the swing voters that decide elections to vote against him.

Hilary is same old, same old partisan BS. Obama comes out of the Chicago political machine. I'll have to hold my nose against the stink and vote Dem anyway. No way I'll ever vote for a rescum for a very long time, if ever. Quite a change for a kid that used to stuff envelopes for the John Birch Society.

One of the best quotes ever -
"A working person voting Republcan is like a chicken voting for Colonel Sanders."

For the younger folks, Colonel Sanders is the man who founded Kentucky Fried Chicken, now known as KFC.

[quade 3]

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Meh . . .

Against Hillary he still wins.

Against Obama it's an interesting contest.

What the polls say now is completely meaningless. Take a look at past elections.

I'm not talking about polls. I'm talking about reality.

Hillary is unelectable against McCain. This has nothing to do with polls and does have everything to do with history.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[rehmwa 2]

"Moveon.org"
Hard to get past that leader

1. national holiday - I could care less about weak gestures one way or the other, the fact that our reps and sens waste time on these bills either way is more disturbing to me. yes or no vote

2. hawkish than Bush on Iraq, Russia and China - meh, let's get out and stop wasting money. score one against him if he can't figure out how to do that effectively right away and still maintain our safety

3. His reputation is built on his opposition to torture - waterboarding... we've come a long way in what 'torture' means over the last few decades. no opinion either way on this one

4. woman's right to choose - I can't tell if he 'opposes it' from the description or just considers it a state's rights issue vs a national. I think it's not the fed's biz, but the state's so I can't cast an opinion

5. He voted against the children's health care bill - could care less, these are usually 'titled' something like that but have so much other crap in it that they all deserve to be shot down, take it to the generic 'free' health care threads

6. He's one of the richest people in a Senate filled with millionaires - I don't begrudge someone else's stuff. moot point on way or the other

7. Many of McCain's fellow Republican senators say he's too reckless - I can't trust what Republican politicians say. nothing to do with this one

8. McCain has 59 lobbyists raising money for his campaign, - just like everyone else. But this actually is a problem for me. like to see someone step up and go against the grain

9. McCain has sought closer ties to the extreme religious right in recent years - meh, anti religious types think someone that says grace at meals is an 'extreme' nutjob that should be ridiculed. This is a clear comparison to Obama's situation to say "See? they aren't any different"

10. He positions himself as pro-environment - whatever the hell that means. I hope he doesn't promote the vast series of useless enviro-actions that cause more pollution and just takes money and jobs from the citizens of the US.




I'm mostly with Quade on this one. He's in most likely, but Obama could make the race interesting if Hillary doesn't steal the DFL's nomination through "Bush-like" techniques and cronyisms.

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

[lawrocket 3]

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1. John McCain voted against establishing a national holiday in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Yes. I remember the Public Enemy Song "By the Time I get the Arizona."

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Now he says his position has "evolved,"

Maybe it has. I was fully in favor of drilling in the
ANWR. Thanks to comments on this very forum, my position has evolved.

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he's continued to oppose key civil rights laws

I read the cite. It seems he's more opposed to "progressive" civil rights laws, eh?

Things to observe:

"McCain Would Not Support Affirmative Action for College Admissions. "

Good. Remember that Dr. King famously mentioned, "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."

In other words, McCain support not judging people by skin color. Suck on that one. How can you spin that judging people by the color of their skin is not judging people by the color of their skin? "All animals are equal - but some animals are more equal than others." Remember THAT quote? It wasn't King - it was Orwell.

"McCain Housing Speech Blamed Americans Who “Bought Homes They Couldn’t Afford” and Argued Against Vigorous Federal Intervention." - um, yeah. No shit. Why are people foreclosing? Because they can't afford payments, right? "Buy more house than you can afford" was a common perception.

What, are they defaulting because they can afford the payments? No shit. The emperor has no clothes. BLASPHEME!!!

"Mr. McCain argued this week against a vigorous federal intervention to address the crisis, saying Washington should not bail out banks and homeowners who in his view had knowingly taken on risky mortgages.”

And I happen to agree. An excellent business model is the failure proof business. Businesses fail all the time because they do stupid shit. Let the government subsidize stupidity, and you'll get MORE STUPIDITY! I happen to agree with McCain - and rather like that he tells it like he sees it.

"McCain Repeatedly Voted Against Raising The Minimum Wage." - see this post - http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=2825140#2825140
McCain voted for the last one, and Clinton and Obama voted against it.

Oh - there is much more at work than just voting for or against a minimum wage. Were Clinton and Obama really saying, "Fuck the poor?"

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According to Bloomberg News, McCain is more hawkish than Bush on Iraq, Russia and China. Conservative columnist Pat Buchanan says McCain "will make Cheney look like Gandhi."

Okay. Tell me what you think. Are you telling me that the left is now looking to Pat Buchanan for intellectual leadership.

I agree with the statement. But that's my opinion. What's yours? I'm no Buchananite.

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His reputation is built on his opposition to torture, but McCain voted against a bill to ban waterboarding, and then applauded President Bush for vetoing that ban

See my post about the democrats vetoing the increased minimum wage. I find it WHOLLY consistent to be against torture, but also be against a law that provides only 19 specific interrogation techniques.

Does the law say that "waterboarding shall be banned?" I'd like to think that he'd vote for that bill. He pretty much said that. But apparently the drafters of the bill aren't in the mood for saying what can't be done, only saying what can.

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McCain opposes a woman's right to choose. He said, "I do not support Roe versus Wade. It should be overturned."

He can state that opinion. He also inplied in that statement that there is nothing he can do about that now.

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He's one of the richest people in a Senate filled with millionaires.

Yes - No. 7 on the list. Dems rank 1-4 and 6 ahead of him.

Since Moveon is the proponent, I wonder how Soros would score?

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The Children's Defense Fund rated McCain as the worst senator in Congress for children. He voted against the children's health care bill last year, then defended Bush's veto of the bill.

He thinks that parents should be takign care of kids, and not the government? The evil bastard.

Note - it could also be titled, "Who is the most socialistic with regard to children?"

And how's this for "non-partisan?"
http://www.childrensdefense.org/site/DocServer/2007_Scorecard_bestworst.pdf?docID=6422

25 scored 100% - ALL DEMS.
13 scored 30% or below - ALL REPUBS.

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Associated Press reports he and his wife own at least eight homes!

Yes. Apparently he can afford them.

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Yet McCain says the solution to the housing crisis is for people facing foreclosure to get a "second job" and skip their vacations

So you think that people facing foreclosure SHOULD take vacations? They should not do what they can to come up with the scratch to actually pay it? WOW! And then let the government bail them out, right? Yes. FANTASTIC POLICY!

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Many of McCain's fellow Republican senators say he's too reckless to be commander in chief. One Republican senator said: "The thought of his being president sends a cold chill down my spine. He's erratic. He's hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me."

Again, "This is what others are saying. Get on the bandwagon."
Yeah, he probably IS hotheaded and has demonstrated that he cannot be pigeonholed as a conservative and speaks his mind.

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McCain talks a lot about taking on special interests, but his campaign manager and top advisers are actually lobbyists.

Hillary just fired her lobbyist campaign strategist for lobbying a cause she disagreed with. And she speaks VOLUMES about takign on special interests. Constantly.

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McCain has sought closer ties to the extreme religious right in recent years.

As Obama does. And Hillary has been busily trying to court them, as well.

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He positions himself as pro-environment, but he scored a 0—yes, zero—from the League of Conservation Voters last year

Why? Because he flies a private jet?

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[billvon 2,463]

I'm no fan of McCain, but some of these are pretty silly.

>He's one of the richest people in a Senate filled with millionaires.

Good for him. Why is that a bad thing? Should we prefer people who suck at making money? In my experience, that sort of incompetence spills over into other areas.

>He positions himself as pro-environment . . .

Everyone does. It's like saying "I support the troops." It's a sound bite that no longer has any meaning, but everyone is required to say.

[lawrocket 3]

I agree. I'm no fan of McCain, but this thing is the sort of puffery that it, well, "silly."

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[TankBuster 0]

One of the best quotes ever -
"A working person voting Republcan is like a chicken voting for Colonel Sanders."

So, what's a "working person?" I'm interested in your definition.

The forecast is mostly sunny with occasional beer.

[kelpdiver 2]

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Hillary is unelectable against McCain. This has nothing to do with polls and does have everything to do with history.

The corpse of Hilter could run against Hillary and it would still come down to Florida and Ohio.

[kelpdiver 2]

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6. He's one of the richest people in a Senate filled with millionaires. The Associated Press reports he and his wife own at least eight homes! Yet McCain says the solution to the housing crisis is for people facing foreclosure to get a "second job" and skip their vacations.6

8. McCain talks a lot about taking on special interests, but his campaign manager and top advisers are actually lobbyists. The government watchdog group Public Citizen says McCain has 59 lobbyists raising money for his campaign, more than any of the other presidential candidates.8

6- is heartless sounding, but correct policy. Bailing out those in foreclosure will maintain the inflated housing prices. Allowing equilibrium to return will allow those who chose not to make bad loans to have a better chance at buying a home.

8- who is more qualified to run a campaign that lobbyists? Only an idiot would go to battle with inferior talent.

[TheAnvil 0]

If that's the best the moveon.org idiots can come up with then, they're as dumb as I think they are. Unfortunately the average level of education in America is such that many people might be dumb enough to let such a list sway their vote. Thanks, NEA. OOPS! Another thread...

Lawrocket's and Rehmwa's comments are pretty much right on.

I like McCain in many regards and dislike him in others. He's the best of the three likely candidates by a long, long shot. Look forward to seeing how a McCain-led executive branch would conduct business during the budget cycle.

Vinny the Anvil
Post Traumatic Didn't Make The Lakers Syndrome is REAL
JACKASS POWER!!!!!!

[georgerussia 0]

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Yet McCain says the solution to the housing crisis is for people facing foreclosure to get a "second job" and skip their vacations.6

And I would vote for him just for that.

* Don't pray for me if you wanna help - just send me a check. *

[algboy 0]

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Yet McCain says the solution to the housing crisis is for people facing foreclosure to get a "second job" and skip their vacations.6

And I would vote for him just for that.

Lemme see . . . spoiled brat son of an admiral hooks up with millionaire daughter of Budweiser baron while still married to crippled wifey #1. You go Johnnie-boy! Let `em eat turds. Arrogant prick.

“Keep your elbow up!"

[georgerussia 0]

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Lemme see . . . spoiled brat son of an admiral hooks up with millionaire daughter of Budweiser baron while still married to crippled wifey #1.

So what? Each long-term politician is full of shit one way or another.

* Don't pray for me if you wanna help - just send me a check. *

[algboy 0]

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Lemme see . . . spoiled brat son of an admiral hooks up with millionaire daughter of Budweiser baron while still married to crippled wifey #1.

So what? Each long-term politician is full of shit one way or another.

Bingo! No disagreement there. Dem--Repub, just different wings on the same bird of prey.

[lawrocket 3]

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Yet McCain says the solution to the housing crisis is for people facing foreclosure to get a "second job" and skip their vacations.6

And I would vote for him just for that.

Lemme see . . . spoiled brat son of an admiral hooks up with millionaire daughter of Budweiser baron while still married to crippled wifey #1. You go Johnnie-boy! Let `em eat turds. Arrogant prick.

So in other words, you've got nothing bad to say about his idea - just the character of the candidate.

I read you.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[algboy 0]

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Yet McCain says the solution to the housing crisis is for people facing foreclosure to get a "second job" and skip their vacations.6

And I would vote for him just for that.

Lemme see . . . spoiled brat son of an admiral hooks up with millionaire daughter of Budweiser baron while still married to crippled wifey #1. You go Johnnie-boy! Let `em eat turds. Arrogant prick.

So in other words, you've got nothing bad to say about his idea - just the character of the candidate.

I read you.

Oh, lots of his ideas suck the big one, but the no bailout argument is RIGHT ON. Even a broken clock is right twice a day.

I can sympathize with the poor shmucks who drank the "real estate always goes up", "they're not making any more land" or the "it's different here" pablum from the NAR and other self-interested groups. I just don't want them--and especially the speculators, bankers, hedge funds et al--bailed out. Let the market correct and people can get a hard lesson in life: do your homework, greed will bite you in the @ss, what goes up WILL go down, etc.

I'm a former realtor/loan originator (heretic) who wouldn't drink the Kool-Aid so I bailed in 2003 when I thought prices and lending practices were ALREADY insane--and they only got worse after that--and a bloodbath was coming. I didn't want to take a 9mm from some burned flipper.

FYI, here's a real estate tip, for y'all. If you buy a property whose PITI (principal, interest, taxes and insurance) amount to MORE than available rents for that same property--RUN, do not walk away. The market has NOT bottomed out. The market will not rebound anytime soon. You are a potential knife-catcher with a soon-to-be savings-destroying alligator on your hands. Bad investment.

Did I answer your question? [murmers to self: gotta go easy on the coffee . . . . ]

“Keep your elbow up!"

[lawrocket 3]

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The market has NOT bottomed out. The market will not rebound anytime soon.

Ah, this is where I disagree, and I'm putting my money where my mouth is and buying.

And the sooner we do NOT bail them out, the sooner we'll recover.

I'm one of those who thinks that the Great Depression would have been the Great Recession but for the intervention of a POTUS and Congress who, for one reason or another, kept getting elected.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[algboy 0]

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The market has NOT bottomed out. The market will not rebound anytime soon.

Ah, this is where I disagree, and I'm putting my money where my mouth is and buying.

And the sooner we do NOT bail them out, the sooner we'll recover.

I'm one of those who thinks that the Great Depression would have been the Great Recession but for the intervention of a POTUS and Congress who, for one reason or another, kept getting elected.

As long as we're veering so far OT, I'll reiterate. It took several years for (in AZ, for example) properties to appreciate 100% on "easy money" and ZERO underwriting standards (remember "liar loans"?) in just three years. THREE YEARS!!! Is that not insane vis-a-vis incomes? Please, I ask you.

How can a hyper-inflated, speculative RE market based on easy credit, lack of lending standards and a gold-rush everybody-can-make-a-million mentality reverse itself in just one year? Answer: it won't.

Lawrocket, I know--from reading your posts--you're a sharp guy, but I humbly suggest that someone(s) with a vested interest [e.g. "never ask a barber if you need a haircut"] has been selling you a bill of goods. My previous post about PITI v. rental income is solid. It is a fundamental rule for real estate investment. As you've probably heard you cannot break the law; the law will break you.

I hope you're not in too deep with whatever leap of faith you've made, but I'm very . . . VERY dubious about any market bottom withing the next several years. Hope I'm not coming off too bitchy, but it bums me to see peeps so burned in this whole fiasco lately.

I know that I often write with a chip on my shoulder and a fair amount of venom at times, but I'm sincere about this real estate meltdown. I hate to see people sucked into it--still.

“Keep your elbow up!"

[lawrocket 3]

Oh, you aren't coming off as bitchy. My wife and I saw an opportunity across the street and took it. Mind you, this was four months ago - and we've now got a note - for $100k below appraised value.

I'm meeting next Tuesday to see about refinancing it. We've still got all that equity in it and can go for a lower rate.

I'm making my bets. I'm actually even thinking about buying another house down the street. Since I so totally brought down property values with that steal I got, I might as well reap the benefit. But we may have trouble getting another loan on our income.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[algboy 0]

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Oh, you aren't coming off as bitchy. My wife and I saw an opportunity across the street and took it. Mind you, this was four months ago - and we've now got a note - for $100k below appraised value.

I'm meeting next Tuesday to see about refinancing it. We've still got all that equity in it and can go for a lower rate.

I'm making my bets. I'm actually even thinking about buying another house down the street. Since I so totally brought down property values with that steal I got, I might as well reap the benefit. But we may have trouble getting another loan on our income.

No sarcasm: I wish you well with your investment.

“Keep your elbow up!"

[lawrocket 3]

Thanks. We already are making more on rent with it than the existing payment.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[wmw999 2,166]

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We already are making more on rent with it than the existing payment

My ex-husband and I did something similar during the last mortgage meltdown, with the same result (note: get someone else to help negotiate if you sell to the tenants, unless you enjoy being a hardass to people you sort of know). It worked pretty well.

Why, if giving crappy mortgages to optimistic consumers was a bad idea 25 years ago, was it a good idea 3-5 years ago?

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)