| In spite of historical summit Bush-McCain-Obama on economic plan |
| Analysis of the financial crisis in the United States |
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| Bag operators lived through another tense day on Thursday, the 2nd in Wall Street, just before the voting of the House of Representatives on the law of financial rescue. Photo: Richard Drew / AP |
Episodes of the crisisg
For Isaac Cohen
WASHINGTON HISPANIC
The financial crisis that it is affecting to the economy of the United States and hence to the world economy it broke loose gradually, for episodes.
The origin of the crisis is in the rise of the prices of the housing, which were pushed up by a factors combination, such as the low money-market rates; the irresponsible granting of mortgage credits; and the emulation of the consumers to buy before the prices were rising more.
All these factors generated a bubble that began to go flat when the houses offer overcame the demand, towards ends of the year 2005. From there from now on, the prices of the houses precipitated, firstly in some states like Florida, California and Nevada and then at national level.
Towards ends of 2006, the first difficulties declarations began to happen on the mortgage market, especially in the mortgages of high risk, this way called because the debtors did not have very good credit. Nevertheless, the difficulties did not remain there, because the mortgages are used to endorse bonds that are acquired by investors. That disables knowledge with certainty which mortgages were damaged, which began generating suspicion on the credit market.
Even there, during 2007, the widespread belief was that the difficulties were going to concentrate on the mortgage market of high risk, while the prices of the housing one was hoping that they should fall down only in those states where there was too many construction of new houses.
After 2008 began, the real magnitude of the crisis was still not suspected. The principal worries were the rise of the gasoline, of the eatables and of other prime matters, as well as the increase of the unemployment. This relative calmness lasted until the first episode of the crisis happened, in March of this year, with the collapse and sale of the investment bank Bear Stearns. The central bank and the Department of the Treasure intervened, to avoid contagion, giving him a loan for 29 billion dollars to the commercial bank JP Morgan Chase, to acquire the frustrated bank.
This intervention seemed to calm the turbulency, but the difficulties persistence on the mortgages market led, during the first weekend of September, to the second episode of the crisis. The action of the government was deeper, because it consisted of the intervention of two companies sponsored by the government, which control half of the mortgage market, known like Fanny Mae and Freddie Mac.
But, this time the calmness lasted less. On Sunday, the 14th of September, there happened the third episode after the affirmation of the Secretary of the Treasure Henry Paulson of whom there would no be any more rescues. The investment bank Lehman Brothers broke, while Merrill Lynch, another investment bank, was acquired by Bank of America, the biggest commercial bank.
From this weekend the episodes rush with major speed. On Tuesday, the 16th of September, to avoid a chain reaction, the central bank assumed the control of the gigantic insurer AIG, by means of an injection for 85 billion dollars. On Wednesday, the 15th, there was an escape towards the treasury notes to 30 days, indicating fear between the investors. On the following day, there was a bullfight for 78.000 million dollars against the investment funds of the monetary market, which accentuated the credit scarcity in the economy.
The latter event seems that Ben Bernanke led the Secretary of the Treasure, Henry Paulson, with the consultancy of the President of the central bank, to propose a global solution, instead of the partial remedies that had come applying. This way the following episode arose, with the called bundle of rescue for 700.000 million dollars, destined to buy and to remove liquid assets, or contaminated mortgages that nobody wants to buy, of the balances of the financial institutions. But the bundle needed legislative approval.
Regrettably, after a weekend of intense negotiations, Monday, the 29th, the House of Representatives pushed back the approval of the bundle of rescue. That precipitated a deep fall in the Stock Exchange of Values of New York and in those of the whole world.
In the middle of this horrifying week, the Senate adopted the rescue bundle as most of the fourth three parts, increasing the pressure to the Representative's Chamber so that it does the same.
Everything seems to indicate that the rescue bundle will turn into law, but nobody knows if this will be the last episode of the financial crisis.
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| The people who works or who looks for work are afraid for his savings, for his work, for his housing, for his small business. |
The last risk mortgage for 700.000 million dollars
For: José R. Uzal
President Bush, in his last speech to the nation last week, said to us that we did not have another alternative to be saved to the financial sector. He said that certain companies had become very big and that it was not possible to allow to fail. It did not mention that he is who is in charge of the Department of Justice; that he is a person in charge of not allowing to develop monopolies or a company to control the market. He said to us that it was not possible to control an economy of the 21st century with laws of the 20th century but he did not suggest any new law to solve the problem of companies that go so far as to control a market and abuse his preferential position. Only he said that the taxpayers had to grant him to the financial sector, which is practically in failure, the last sub-standard mortgage for $ 700.000 million dollars.
Bush knows perfectly well that the government has no money and that therefore the Congress will have to authorize an increase of the foreign debt to $ 1.1 trillions. The national deficit is of $ 438.000 millions (it does not include the cost of the war in Iraq). To look for $ 700.000 millions we will have to ask him for the funds to China, to Saudi Arabia and to Europe and get into debt more to the country.
In spite of all this the President said to us that if we were not doing this in one week, the destruction of our economy is imminent.
To be able to understand the magnitude of this demand to the pockets of the taxpayers it is a necessary knowledge where from there went out the number of $ 700.000 millions. It is a completely arbitrary number, which there represent 5 per cent of the mortgages that are or they might go so far as to be in bank execution (foreclosure). If this number is 5 per cent, the entire total of the expressed mortgages is almost 7 trillions. The taxpayers we are giving him the deposit of 5 per cent to the banks so that they obtain a sub-standard mortgage of the government of the USA for a whole of $ 7 trillions. The double of the entire value of our economy.
Now then, the President not only wants that we give him to the financial sector the money that we have to borrow; also it demands that we give it to him without questions. The President wants that the Secretary of the Treasure has absolute freedom on $ 700.000 and that the decisions that it does could not be annulled, for the Congress or the Spanish Parliament. All this asked for it 35 days before the elections.
The financial sector is not the only sector of the economy. The economy some time ago that goes in sting and the taxpayers know it for more than one year. To blame those who received mortgages that they cannot pay is to blame the victims. To nationalize a segment of the economy goes against the prescripts of the free company.
We are opposite to a problem that has no political parties. Instead of accepting the economic ultimatum of the President we must look for another solution. To look for another solution we have to find the causes of this disaster and punish the culprits. To be able to do this it is essential that the Secretary of the Treasure and the Manager of the Federal Reservation they resign. Both are too much involved in the problem and neither can nor must be a part of the solution.
(*) uzal@msn.com
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| “This crisis might affect another family that wishes a loan to buy a housing” |
What is in the scales?
For: Larry Craig (*)
After working for 41 years, a familiar printing turned out to be forced to close operations in March. Consistently, 19 persons lost his work places. The proprietors closed the business when the company remained without credit.
In another case, the manager of a shop has had to diminish his operative costs cutting the hours of operation away, while he hopes to know if they will grant him a favourable time to continue with the payments of his loan.
These persons, as well as many others in similar situations, live through enough far from Wall Street, the street in New York that serves to him as direction to the financial markets. But they, his personnel, clients and local governments had already feeling the effects of the financial crisis before it was bursting in the news last week.
The National Association of the Small-scale enterprise (National Small Business Association) says that 67 per cent of the business proprietors were affected by the credit absence in August, compared to 55 per cent in February.
The problem has his roots in the collapse of the market of mortgage loans.
What happened was that the institutions gave money to buy houses to individuals who were not qualifying, with adaptable money-market rates. They were thinking that the owners would have profit with the appreciation of these houses. But when the values of the houses, on the contrary, drooped, and the interests rose, the proprietors stopped paying his loans, and allowed to the banks and to the institutions with debts and without capital to grant more loans or to keep on operating.
If it is not taken control, this crisis might affect another family that wishes a loan to buy a housing, or to acquire a motorcar or to send his children to the university. It might have a strong impact in the funds of investments and in the pensions.
In September, the Secretary of the Treasure, Hank Paulson, proposed an economic plan so that the federal government was buying these loans and was retaining them until the market was becoming stable, and the goods will gain value to sell them again and to recover the investment.
The plan is not to assume the companies control, to deliver money to the businessmen. The plan consists of the buy of goods, of this case, the housings that the institutions cannot sell in these moments.
My conservative philosophy says to me that the federal government must not intervene on the market. And I detest the idea of compromising hundreds of thousands of million dollars of the taxpayers to arrange a commotion caused by the avarice of a few. But I have come to the conclusion that not to do absolutely anything on our part would be catastrophic for the economy, and finally it would affect a big number of innocent persons.
If the people cannot extract loans, many business might close, many persons might lose his work places or his houses. Nevertheless, the protection of the taxpayers has to be a priority for the government. The help would have to be limited and focused.
If federal funds are invested, once these goods bandage the money to themselves it should return to the arks of the National Treasure. Neither must be compensation, or what any of them call “golden parachutes”, for the presidents of the companies that receive monetary help of the government. And there must be also some type of supervision independent from this plan, to protect the interests of the people.
What is happening well financier might compare with one 9/11. For my part I neither will rush in forming judgments, nor will leave that the Senate does not do it either.
(*) republican Senator of IdahoCongreso.
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| George Bush. Photo AP |
Bush begs approval of financial bundle
harles Babington and
Julie Hirschfeld Davis
AP
HayEl president, George W. Bush, affirmed at the end of this edition (Thursday, the 2nd) that the crisis of the financial markets "has exceeded for a long time New York and Wall Street", on having begged to the Congress that approves the project of rescue for 700.000 million dollars.
In eve of the second voting of the House of Representatives, this Friday, the 3rd, Bush tried to increase the pressure on the legislators who voted for "on" "not" Monday, the 29th. The defeat of the project shook Wall Street and Washington, and gave place to the new one that the Senate approved for wide margin on the 1st Wednesday night.
Bush appeared before the press and his cameras in the White House with a ten manufacturers and businessmen of the whole country. He insisted that the measurement not only tries to rescue to big financial signatures that took bad decisions but solve a credit absence that paralyzes the majority of the commerce.
" This problem affects the people who works", affirmed the president. "They are afraid for his savings; they are afraid for his work; they are afraid for his housing; they are afraid for his small business", it added.
" The House of Representatives must listen to these voices and approve this project so that we could gather to restore the confidence", said Bush.
The second proposal
After his brief words, he asked the businessmen to go to lobby before the conferees, who were preparing themselves for the second voting on a law that many would prefer to avoid: an enormous bundle of financial rescue that has infuriated million Americans, but that the government says is vital to avoid a recession.
This time the proposal returns to the Lower House loaded with thousands of million dollars in clippings of taxes and other incentives. The aggregations take as a target to attract at least a ten representatives who voted against the measurement on Monday, when 228-205 failed, causing a record fall in the bag of New York.
The senators added the new elements in a voting of 74-25 on Wednesday, sending the bundle reformed to the Lower House for a voting foreseen for Friday. The leaders of this camera were gliding to devote themselves on Thursday to press the legislators in search of the necessary votes.
In the Senate
The bundle of financial rescue was never in danger in the Senate. The senators nevertheless played the catalysts role for the House of Representatives, adding clauses of taxes favored by the left and the right in an effort for that the leaders of this camera wait persuade enough representatives to change his vote of "not" to "himself" into the polemic project.
The modifications
The changes were directed principally to 133 republican representatives who voted against the bundle.
The republican David Dreier, of California, he said on Thursday morning that the first version of the project seemed odious to him, but that this time glides to vote in favor of the measurement.
" I worried much with the proposal that was presented initially, so it would have allowed to be privileges", said Dreier. But he added that he likes the new version because "it includes clippings of taxes faced to the growth".
" I am going to say a thing to them, the American people feels frustrated and furious", he declared Dreier to the television program of the ABC "Good Morning America", and added that he had listened to messages as that of "a woman who was complaining about that could not obtain a loan to pay for the studies of his daughter".
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| They had sowed the panic in local communities of 53 cities |
| Between grills more than 1.500 hooligans |
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| Julie L. Myers, undersecretary of Interior Safety for the ICE, announces the results of the vast operation “Community Shield” that focused in the street bands. Photo: AP. |
Víctor Caycho
washington hispanic
The results of a gigantic operation of safety that focused in "cleaning" of hooligans the streets of several cities in practically the whole nation were announced by Julie L. Myers, chief of the office of Immigration and Customs (I HOISTED, for his initials in English).
On the 1st Wednesday, in press conference that it offered in the head office of the ICE in Washington, DC, Myers announced that in the operation named “Community Shield” and that was realized for four months in 53 cities of 28 states of the country 1.759 persons were arrested. Of this whole, close to 1.500 they were identified like members of the bands or associated with these criminal groups, including 17 recognized leaders hooligans. The remaining ones – close to 300-, they were stopped by violations of the laws of immigration and deportation processes have been opened to them.
“ The street bands torment to the local communities in which they operate and unmelt fear by means of the intimidation and the violence”, said Myers, on having explained the reasons of the enormous raid.
“ With the cooperation of other agencies of the law of the whole nation, we have reached successfully this task against these bands, arresting his leaders, disordering his operations and putting his members and associates behind the grills”, it added.
Of many origins
In accordance with the relation delivered by the ICE, most of the arrested (1.096) are of Mexican origin.
75 original arrested of El Salvador are added to them, 44 of Honduras and 32 of Guatemala. Also there appear 12 Dominicans, 9 Colombians, 5 Cuban, 5 Haitians, 3 Nicaraguans, and 2 of Brazil, Chile and Ecuador.
Nevertheless, the United States is the second country with major number of arrested, 392 in whole. There were also others of Asian and Caribbean origin.
The bands
On the other hand, the chief of the ICE informed that 338 of the arrested are Southern members of the band (SUR-13), 86 of the Crowd Salvatrucha (MS-13), 52 of 18th Street and 38 of Latin Kings.
Between the arrested represent hundreds of hooligans with criminal charges that go from the attempt of murder to the aggravated attack, the commercialization of drugs and the violations in the use of firearms. Different they have charges of re-entering to the country after having being deported.
HOIST it identified five leaders hooligans who appear between the brave ones. They are a 26-year-old Walter Garza Morales, Mexican and member of the band 18 Street; 20-year-old Jeffrey Díaz, of the Dominican band Don't Play (DDP); 27-year-old Roberto Domínguez, Mexican and leader of the band Inland Empire of Atlanta; Kinske St. Vilus, of 33 years, of the Bahamas and leader of the band Uptown, arrested in Miami; and 20-year-old Valentín Sierra-Martínez, of the band Norteño-14 arrested in Chicago.
Between the cities where the operations were realized they represent New York, Los Angeles, Washington, Miami, The Step and San Antonio.
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| Survivor gives the track of macabre find in MD |
| He adopts girls, kills them and freezes bodies in his house |
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| Renee Bowman, the woman accused of giving death to two of his three adopted daughters. Photo: Office of the Deputy of Calvert / AP |
Felipe Lagos
Washington Hispanic
A woman managed to adopt three 7, 9 and 11-year-old girls in the District of Columbia (DC), in spite of having several precedents that might have prevented or made his qualification difficult.
On Saturday, the 27th, two girls of major age turned out to be dead inside an ice block inside a freezer of big size, in his housing of the County of Calvert (Maryland).
The frozen remains remained there for at least one year, according to the first investigations, which determined that the double murder would have registered between October and November, 2007 in another house located in the field of Rockville, of the County of Montgomery, where in that one then the suspect was living before changing first Prince George's and then Calvert.
The minor of the adopted daughters – whose name keeps in reservation as the identities of two fatal victims - perhaps saved the life after escaping jumping from the second apartment, on Wednesday, the 24th of September, over a window of the bedroom where the woman identified like 43-year-old Renee Bowman, shut it up under key after striking it without compassion with a shoe of big blocks.
The girl was found strolling in a street of the area of Lusby, in Calvert, on Friday, the 26th, for a neighbor-Phillip Garrett - who observed with surprise the bruises and bruises in the legs and arms of the minor and his garment stained with tracks of blood and feces.
Sobbing, she said to him that he was three days old without eating. Already more calmed, she told that his two adopted sisters had been struck months behind by the woman, up to giving them death.
Deputies of Calvert mobilized up to the house of Bowman, located in the block 700 of Buckskin Trail, in Lusby, where they arrested the woman and accused it of infantile abuse in the first grade.
Something incredible
On the following day, the team of investigators of Calvert (CIT, for his initials in English), looked in the residence and found in the cellar the frozen corpses of the adopted sisters of the surviving girl. “He was thinking about having seen of everything in my career, but this is incredible”, affirmed the Sheriff of the County.
The bodies and the freezer were taken to the office of the legal doctor in Baltimore, where the experts should have hoped that the content should be defrosted. On Wednesday they proceeded to the preliminary autopsy, but definitive results were not obtained about the identities of the girls, who now are in situation of “missing persons“. It will be necessary to wait for other examinations to determine how the girls died and if there stayed traces of wounds or traumatism, indicated the jurists.
Bowman is in the jail, without right to deposit, after having confessed both crimes, which today investigate the departments of police officer of three counties of Maryland (Calvert, Prince George's and Montgomery), where the freezer was mobilized with his macabre content during the changes.
In Montgomery a team of detectives came on Tuesday, the 29th to the house located in the block 13100 of Vandalia Drive, in the field of Aspen Hill, in Rockville, where the marked mother lived, even before changing.
There they dug in an area without grassland of the interior garden and they were helped by dogs of the unit K-9 specializing in detecting human remains, “but they found neither bodies nor evidences related to this case”, as said Blanca Kling, linkage of the police of the above mentioned county to Washington Hispanic.
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| They demand 20 million dollars of rescue in waters of Somalia |
| Pirates capture a ship loaded with Russian tanks |
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| The commander of the destroyer Howard, of the USA, he observes on Tuesday, the 30th while one of the helicopters of the Navy watches the ship Faina, taken Somali pirates. Photo: Jason R. Zalasky-US Navy / AP |
Víctor Caycho
Washington Hispanic
Before the alertness of a destroyer and of American planes, the spokesman of a few Somali pirates revealed to The Associated Press that his group demands 20 million dollars to liberate a cargo ship full of Russian tanks.
The spokesman also warned that the pirates will fight to death if any country tries to realize military operations to recover the vessel. A man, who said to be the captain of this one, informed that a member of the crew had died.
The pirates captured the ship Faina, of Ukrainian operators, on Thursday, the 25th opposite to the coast of Somalia, when the ship was going to Kenya with a shipment of 33 Russian tanks T-72 and big quantity of ammunitions and snacks.
The American destroyer Howard of missiles teledirigidos was remaining opposite to the Somali coast to make sure that the pirates will not withdraw the tanks, the ammunitions or other heavy armaments of the ship, since this one was anchored close to the coast.
A spokesman of V American Fleet admitted that the navy was continuing "deeply worried" for the destination of 21 members of the crew and the load of the ship.
In a gesture of slightly frequent cooperation, the Americans continued the alertness of the Faina until the missiles frigate Russian Neustrashimy, or "Intrepid", should come to the area.
Sugule Alí, spokesman of the pirates, said on Sunday, the 28th that was in the covering of the Faina when he spoke by a phone satelital. "We want the payment of the rescue, nothing more. We need 20 million dollars for the sure liberation of the ship and the crew", affirmed Alí, and warned: "If we are attacked we will defend ourselves until the last one of us dies".
Opposite versions
A source of the Pentagon said on Tuesday, the 30th that three of the pirates who keep kidnapped an Ukrainian ship loaded with tanks and weapon died to shots after a discussion between them, but the captores denied the same day that there should have been a shooting on board.
Sugule Alí, pushed the version back and made sure that they were celebrating the Moslem Eid holiday to the-Fitr, in spite of being surrounded by military ships and American helicopters.
War ships
The destroyer Howard, of the American navy, armed with bullets teledirigidos, has been attentive to the ship kidnapped for several days and his crew has spoken for radio with the pirates and the crew.
On Monday, the United States located more cruises and destroyers in a radio of 10 miles of the Ukrainian cargo ship in hands of Somali pirates due to the "enormous worry" before the possibility that the tanks and other weapon fall down "in wrong hands", said the lieutenant of vessel Nathan Christensen, spokesman of the Fifth Fleet.
The Fifth Fleet said that the cargo ship was going to the Kenyan Mombasa port, although "additional informations established that the shipment was destined to Sudan".Back to top
| Tragedy puts families into mourning in Prince Georgés |
| Helicopter falls down and four occupants perish |
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| A parks police officer happens along with the remains of the helicopter of rescue that smashed in the Regional Park Walker Mill, in Prince George's, on Saturday, the 27th night. Photo: José Luis Magaña / AP |
Víctor Caychos
Washington Hispanic
A helicopter of rescue of the police of Maryland smashed in the middle of a strong storm, the night of Saturday, the 27th, killing four of his occupants, between them an adolescent, that little earlier had turned out to be an injured person in a car accident and that it was led to the central hospital of Prince George's.
The ship fell down in the Regional Park Walker Mill, when the pilot, Stephen J. Bunker, of 59 years, was preparing to realize an emergency landing in the near Air Base of Andrews.
In addition to Bunker, in the accident also the state police officer and paramedic Mickey C died. Lippy, of 34 years, the voluntary worker of emergencies, 39-year-old Tonya Mallard, and Ashley J. Younger, of 17 years, who had graduated recently of the secondary school Waldorf, in the field of Westlake. His friend Jordan Wells, of 18 years, was the only survivor; she is in critical condition and it will be able to recover after several operations and a long treatment of rehabilitation, reported the medical authorities.
Two adolescents were traveling this night in a car Ford Taurus property of Wells, and were few blocks of the house of Younger, where they had glided to see a movie, when the driver lost the control of the vehicle, which collided with the sardinel and ended up by smashing against several trees and another car.
The doctors decided to take them immediately to hospital, but before it happened there came the mother of Younger, Stephanie, in company of the grandmother. They saw when the rescue helicopter was preparing to move two friends and decided to meet them in the hospital. Nevertheless, some hours later only they saw spending the stretcher with Jordan Wells, without having news of his daughter. Soon they took knowledge of the tragedy.
The accident also caused a meticulous review of the fleet of 12 helicopters of the police of rescue of Maryland, after reports and denunciations in the means about flaws in the maintenance and in the operations of flight.
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