Hogan, the definition of creditworthy is that you are highly likely to pay off the loan. When comparing the creditworthiness of two groups, A and B, if group B tends to pay of their loans more than group A, then we must conclude that group B is moe creditworthy than group A. But, it turns out that prior to the CRA, "minorities" had a worse track record for paying back their loans. This would indicate the the banks were already over-extending credit to minorities. That's why the Boston study that was used to justify the passage of CRA has been so widely panned as being unscientific -- it didn't look at repayment, it simply looked at neighborhoods and declared racism. The banks should have cut back.

But, Hogan, you have to understand how the game is played. When a bank wants to expand, say, or merge with another bank, or do lots of other things that businesses do to grow and proper, groups like ACORN sue to stop them, contending that they haven't given out enough loans to people who shouldn't get them. Then, in order to get permission to do whatever, the bank caves in to the extortion and gives out a bunch of bad loans. True, the CRA itself doesn't require bad loans, but the LEGAL SYSTEM manipulated by ACORN (and Obama was one of their lawyers pulling this scam), forces bankes to do so anyway. Ain't it grand?

Lived in one in FL -- never again. Turned out that "reserves" for maintenance where way underestimated (developer low-balling), so dues skyrocketed. HOA board liked replacing mailboxes (ornate ccast-iron ones) every couple of years, etc. Ended up paying more in HOA dues than property taxes! Even though yard maintenance was "included", still had to do it myself for proper job. Would rather live in a log cabin in the woods.

Why is it that liberals assume that the goal of public policy is to maximize government revenue? Shouldn't the goal be to maximize prosperity?

Osama interested in trains? So is Obama! Hmmmm.

And, that 60% of corporations, did they make any money? The vast majority of them didn't, just like mine. It made a little money once, then I went back to being an employee. But, since it cost me money to establish and I may someday reactivate it, I keep it alive. And, each year I file my corporate tax return (because the IRS requires it), and each year I state income zero, ezpenses zero, taxes due zero. And, each year a bunch of liberals run around screaming that my corporation paid no taxes.

The opposite of Taxes is Texas! Come on down!

Well, D.G., that may not be so wise of the young people. First, there will soon be "means testing' for the benefits -- meaning that people who save their money will have it taken away and given to people who didn't save their money; "means testing" takes no account of how you end up with no savings or how you managed to save. So, if you take lavish vacations, buy BMWs instead of Fords, dine out frequently, gamble, etc., and end up with no savings some sucker who saved will have to bail you out. The moral of the story is that savers are suckers (thanks, Uncle Sam.) Second, saving in an IRA or 401k just let's the government know about and control your wealth. Don't doubt that when the government needs the money the government will...

The problem is that since FDR and WWII the government has inserted itself into just about everything that most people can't remember when it was different. It used to be a mostly private country, and most development was the result of private initiative. So, yes, the government is involved in a lot of development now, but not because it has to be or because it's better that way. They take peoples money and then give it to favored people and projects so there's no room left for individual initiative.

Well, truth is that the buses and trolleys of most cities in teh US were originally built, paid for, and operated very successfully by private companies, and in many cases there were competing lines. Over the years, the clutching hands of government found ways to take these companies over, one by one, and make them "municipal" services. As a result, costs went up, service declined, competition was extinguished, and tax-paying, rpofit-making, dividend paying companies were turned into just another set of pigs at the trough. Government has used the same techniques to drive private schools out leaving us with "public" schools that provide the same high-cost, low-result service.