Make AC Great Again?

[Carcounter]

Spot on Notes. Have visited Canada and it is a quite attractive Country, but it has nowhere near the social problems we have and with 10 times the population. Really aren't any countries on Earth that are comparable to USA. The large western Europe democracies come closest, but still aren't comparable.

[notes1]

thanks CC.

I took the time, pointed out the mistakes in MINN poverty numbers. I gave him/her the gov website. no response.

we absolutely have problems in this country, nearly everyone was affected by the recession (except maybe fed workers). I know the banks/wall street were part of the problem. but, I am damn tired of those who refuse to blame any of the problems on those who overspent, over borrowed and under saved. no one forced them to do it.

if we are not willing to identify a problem, just because it is politically incorrect or it might offend someone, we can never really fix it.

[DaBurglar]

thanks CC.

I took the time, pointed out the mistakes in MINN poverty numbers. I gave him/her the gov website. no response.

we absolutely have problems in this country, nearly everyone was affected by the recession (except maybe fed workers). I know the banks/wall street were part of the problem. but, I am damn tired of those who refuse to blame any of the problems on those who overspent, over borrowed and under saved. no one forced them to do it.

if we are not willing to identify a problem, just because it is politically incorrect or it might offend someone, we can never really fix it.I too BLAME "everyone" who knowingly and willingly overspent/borrowed.....but it is not that clear cut or simple.    And the Banks and "wall street" were not simply "just another part of the problem", they were the catalyst and a BIG part of the problem, without whom it would have been just another 9 month recession, not the GREAT RECESSION that lasted.....many many months longer.The average joe schmoe who went out and bought a house he could not afford was, in MANY cases, lured (or "conned" take your pick) by the above referenced banks and "wall street" because, due to a lifting of regulations and an attitude of looking away that BOTH political parties endorsed, the proliferation of Mortgage backed securities and derivatives, along with the absurd credit default swap policy of essentially one company,  made it far too easy and lax to go out and get a 150k mortgage for anyone......most people have NO CLUE about any of this, and while ignorance is not an excuse, the banks and wall street knew what they were doing, most other people did not, nor did they foresee losing the meager job(s) they had.

[notes1]

'lured' or 'conned', again BS. you local grocery store puts beer on sale, were you conned into buying too much, get in a car and killing yourself or someone else? your logic, blame the grocery store.

the federal reserve may have kept interest rates too low for to long (just like now), barney frank got fannie and Freddie to give guaranteed loans to the un-qualified.

but, ultimately, it is the responsibility of the person who borrowed, spent and under saved. quit blaming everyone else.

we can have sympathy for them, we can try to assist them, but stop giving them excuses.

[DaBurglar]

'lured' or 'conned', again BS. you local grocery store puts beer on sale, were you conned into buying too much, get in a car and killing yourself or someone else? your logic, blame the grocery store.

the federal reserve may have kept interest rates too low for to long (just like now), barney frank got fannie and Freddie to give guaranteed loans to the un-qualified.

but, ultimately, it is the responsibility of the person who borrowed, spent and under saved. quit blaming everyone else.

we can have sympathy for them, we can try to assist them, but stop giving them excuses.That is not what I said at all.....you do that all the time, as well as totally oversimplify......Do you even know or understand what I am talking about, with the whole MBSecurity industry and how it all played out???  and what that meant to the average mortgage lender and the average guy looking for a mortgage?THE BANKS are to blame far more than the people because there is the process of applying and (supposedly) qualifying for a mortgage that is supposed to prevent the EXACT crap that happened!!!!!!And why is it ok for you to blame "everyone else" but I cannot???  if you'd take something for that chronic kneejerk of yours you would realize that we are a lot closer and in agreement than you think.

[notes1]

after 30 years in the financial industry, I know a little bit.

did you know that the majority of mortgage loans made by banks were sold to fannie and Freddie? those institutions decided what the qualifications were to be a qualified borrower. the banks simply followed the governments directions. I am not absolving financial institutions, but they have become the politically correct target and scapegoat.

you deny you are a liberal, but your words suggest otherwise. the left's argument is that if a lending institutions allowed one to borrow money and that person did not pay it back, it was then fault of the lending institution. what kind of perverse thinking is that?

as to your statement, 'I blame everyone else', that is false. I blame the borrowers. you are the one who chooses to blame everyone else, but those who made the poor decisions.   

[DaBurglar]

after 30 years in the financial industry, I know a little bit.

did you know that the majority of mortgage loans made by banks were sold to fannie and Freddie? those institutions decided what the qualifications were to be a qualified borrower. the banks simply followed the governments directions. I am not absolving financial institutions, but they have become the politically correct target and scapegoat.

you deny you are a liberal, but your words suggest otherwise. the left's argument is that if a lending institutions allowed one to borrow money and that person did not pay it back, it was then fault of the lending institution. what kind of perverse thinking is that?

as to your statement, 'I blame everyone else', that is false. I blame the borrowers. you are the one who chooses to blame everyone else, but those who made the poor decisions.   I'm genuinely interested:  what did you do during your 30 years in the financial industry?  who (or where) did you work?I had a choice in 1992 when I graduated:  Wall Street or Private Industry Marketing....I chose the latter, mainly because an opportunity arose when I was recruited by a west Coast based conglomerate, and during my 2 weeks out there interviewing, testing and visiting, I realized just how accessible (and warm with a lack of snow) California really is!   But at that time, a "career" on wall street had not yet developed the stench or bent perspective that it now carries, and I seriously considered a couple offers....I am deeply  satisfied I chose the path I did, because, knowing myself, I would have been hurt by the events and flow from 1999 thru 2009......This (forum) is a awful platform and vehicle to debate such broad and sweeping topics....deep, complex and nuanced arguments are impossible to maintain.   despite your insistence, I maintain that (a) I am NOT a liberal and  (b)  we agree on more things than you realize....which is also to say I deny categorically the assertions you make that I am guilty of "perverse" thinking in the manner you state (i.e. I blame the bank/lender when a person defaults or otherwise fails to pay them back.)   It is a lot more complex than that simplified version and yet you and I both know lenders are responsible for their own portfolios and WHO they actually lend to.....if someone or some company INTENTIONALLY or IRRESPONSIBLY fails to make good on a loan, then certainly they are guilty and they suffer severe consequences (unless of course they happen to be a giant WALL STREET entity themselves  lol!)   A person or company who defaults at a minimum is ruined in a number of ways even if the debt is forgiven 100%     A lending institution is in control and responsible for its loans to a very large degree, and should (if competently managed) be able to survive and withstand and conduct a number of potential actions to deal with troubled loans.....at a minimum, they get some great write offs and sympathy from erstwhile critics and hostile parties.You keep mentioning fannie and freddie as if you want to assign the lions share of BLAME to them, when in fact your assertion (that Wall Street and many others were merely, or simply, following the Federal government's lead right up to the 2007/2008 collapse) is mind boggling......UNLESS of course, you really want to acknowledge that it was the Republican-inspired (and Democrat-obliging) relaxing/removal of regulatory oversight in the decade leading up to 2008 that allowed mortgage lenders to truly go "bottom feeding" to produce huge numbers of improper and unhealthy loans to people who normally would be rejected, to fuel the demand by Mortgage Backed Security "sellers" for more loans to bundle so they could reap loads of FEES (while at the same time the proliferation of credit default swaps tied to these unhealthy and unsustainable loans added a level of depth to the crisis that historically had NEVER EVER happened before!)       ALSO:  We have not even touched upon yet the fact that, ostensibly in response to 9/11. G.W. and his admin (primarily the FED) lowered interest rates suddenly and DRASTICALLY, so that the country could sooth its nerves and anxiety via SPENDING & Shopping with money they actually did not have......this is true and undeniable:  the so called "Conservatives" reduced interest rates to such radically low levels, and kept them there long after they said they would in response to 9/11, that the ensuing credit crunch and its role in the entire recession and crash was largely a product of this incompetent and absurd policy-addled administration.I am not relieving or denying the culpability of MANY of the people and companies who took out loans/mortgages in the decade leading up to 2008....I am just asserting (and stating the obvious) that, in terms of the actual WEIGHT of transgressions and the consequences, the financial industry, Wall Street and the Government entities and individuals that allowed them to perpetrate what they did are far FAR more blameworthy.....and yet, this assigning of blame is for one and only one useful purpose:  to PREVENT it from ever happening again while restoring what needs to be restored!I do not excuse poor or irresponsible decisions.....on the contrary, if you have been reading EVERYTHING I WRITE HERE on this forum, I am all for appropriate consequences being meted out where due......but I am also "all for" a lot of other things as well, and I look for the above mentioned "consequences" to actually bear fruit in terms of benefits going forward, not simply to punish and make people feel pain or humiliation.I used to be a Republican (seriously, it is true):  A true blue Reagan Republican.....but alas, the party has totally TOTALLY been wrecked and ruined by several different vectors of ignorance, hate, arrogance and incompetence.   The completely OUTSIZED influence of various one issue/one note groups (such as the NRA, so-called CHRISTIAN groups of which the Anti-Abortion fanatics tend to be the biggest example, and several others) has compromised and ruined true "Conservatism"......The Party of Lincoln, and the party of Reagan, is ruined.I am religious and think Evolution is a total crock of Sh*t, I abhor Abortion, I believe in personal responsibility and in helping oneself to the greatest extent possible BEFORE asking or receiving any type of assistance (but when truly needed, that assistance SHOULD be there no matter what.)    This means I cannot be a "liberal"......I am just no longer willing to minimize or ignore the hypocrisy and "meanness" that infests the Republican Party of today.......but notice I am not saying I am (by default) a Democrat.....oh no no no sir.

[Minn. Fatz]

Canada didn't have to bail out its financial sector because it kept its financial sector regulations. In the US the difference between Wall St. and Las Vegas is that Las Vegas is regulated.

[DaBurglar]

Canada didn't have to bail out its financial sector because it kept its financial sector regulations. In the US the difference between Wall St. and Las Vegas is that Las Vegas is regulated.MY corollary to this excellent analogy would be that Wall Street was the regulatory equivalent of AC when it should have been Vegas as you illustrate.....AC's current casino oversight is a virtual shadow of what it was 10-12 years ago! What's even more bizarre, whenever I mention or bring this topic up when talking with AC casino employees or management, they all implicitly agree with me, as they just shrug their shoulders and laugh nervously.....the poker room employees at Ballys (poker dealers and the Saturday Night Room directors/managers) are really cool, they discuss many things that you might not expect casino employees to talk about, and this issue of oversight is one of them......they freely admit that over the last several years in particular, the NJ Casino Control Commish has conducted very few formal/announced site visits;    since unannounced site visits would be secret they cannot definitively say that NONE have been conducted, but odds are its a rare event given the reduction of the overall organization.

[Carcounter]

Things may have bottomed in AC and will start getting slowly better. Just my opinion based on my weekly visits. Docks Oyster House, an AC icon for many years just completed a massive expansion and they are doing well. Know one of the hostesses there who says they are very busy and on weekend evenings are doing over 500 dinners. Is it just a summer thing or will it continue? Revel to reopen soon. I thimk things will be really good for the rest of the summer, then we'll see if it sticks.