Saturday, October 04, 2008

Riding the wave of easy money

There is nothing risky about spending someone else's money.    It's only a risk when it is your money on the line.  Just as it is for homeowners who do not make a downpayment for their house, it is easy to walk away when its financed with borrowed money.

There is a reason that "sleazy" is frequently used as a modifier to developer.

The fact is that people, including bankers, are seduced by the fast-talking dreamers, and seemingly forget that there has to be substance behind the words.  And if there isn't it all comes crashing down.

Everyone involved gets greedy and basic sound business practices go out the window, as everyone tries to ride the wave of easy money to short-term riches.  Well, when the wave brings the ship crashing into the shore, you have to deal with the wreckage the best you can and, hopefully, walk away intact. I, for one, am not going to cry any tears for Chris White or any other developer who refuses to see reality.  If someone in the development game doesn't understand how phony certain aspects of our economy are, so be it.  It's just as ridiculous as these Wall Street people who come up with arcane, unexplainable financial products, who pretend that they did not realize that they were basically gambling that a perpetual pyramid scheme would work. 

By the way,  it is going to get worse before it gets better.  Those predicting a turn-around by the end of the year are dreaming.

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