McCain / Palin
Category: News and Politics

Wednesday and Thursday nights speeches by Sarah Palin and John McCain were awesome, don't you agree!!  I think John McCain will prove all of us nay sayers wrong with his pick of Sarah Palin.  John McCain's speech last night was so moving.  People wonder why he doesn't talk about what happened to him 40 years ago.  That was such a painful beyond our understanding time.  No wonder he doesn't talk about it.  Most men I know that served in Vietnam don't want to talk about their time there.  I think people need to quit focusing on what happened in his life 40 years ago and start focusing on where he can take this country over the next 4 to 8 years with Sarah Palin by his side.  My friend Bert asked me to hold my judgement on Sarah Palin.  Bert you were right.  Thank you for your words of Wisdom:))))  Only time will tell what the future has to hold, I believe there is a change on the horizon and it is one that will be good for all.  We have the opportunity to have a true leader at the helm, the first true leader our country has seen since Reagan.  I look forward to being a witness to it, I think it is just what our younger generation needs to see.  They need to see what it is like to live in a country where people are proud of their President, feel safe that the man and woman at the helm are making the right choices for our future and the future of our children.  

Todd Palin, Sarah's husband said last week he was working the night shift.  When Sarah became governor of Alaska, she sold Alaska's jet on Ebay, she let the chef at the Governor's mansion go and she cooks for her family.  Todd Palin said that if he had a glass ball ten years ago he might have asked a few more questions when his wife decided to serve on the PTA.  Sarah Palin's and her family are so refreshing.

Last night I was getting upset with the people in the audience shouting USA and interrupting John McCain's speech.  This morning they announced that it was because there were people in the audience booing and when they started booing the others started chanting so the people at home couldn't hear the boo's.  Then there were the pinkers that interrupted his speech.  Where was security when those people entered the building.  Where were these types of people when Obama was giving his speech.  Lets you know Republican's have a lot more class! 

Thanks for listening. 

6:46 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Drilling for OIL

Back in June, there was an article in the News and Events section of Florida Realtors.org discussing Crist changing his stance on drilling for oil.  The one thing that jumped out to me was Florida Democratic Party Spokesman Mark Bubriski, he said and I quote, "It would only increase oil companies record breaking profits."  Let me get this right, even if it means families can not afford to drive to work, the cost of everything is getting higher due to the high price of gas, you are not going to agree to drilling because you don't want the oil companies to make any more money.  That is real bright.  Eric Draper, policy director for the Audubon of Florida said it would take 10 years to produce energy from new offshore leases even if exploration started now.  He said conservation is a better solution.  So let me see if I understand this, it is more important to save the spotted owl or whatever bird Eric is worried about, rather than it is to drill, bring down oil prices and start relying on ourselves rather than to be relying on the Mid East countries who all hate us anyway. 

ANWR is 75 miles from the already existing Alaska Pipeline.  The eight hundred miles of the Alaska pipeline took 10 years to build. It is already in place, it would not take that long to build the 75 miles to ANWR.  I have heard from several people that if you were to toss a dime onto a paper towel that is the extent to what it would do to ANWR.

There are already oil rigs in the Gulf.  My husband is a fishing guide.  Quite a few years ago there were oil riggs off the coast of Florida.  One day they were there, the next day they were gone, from the water level up.  My husband said they show up on the fish finders.  So they capped them off.  They are there are waiting to be tapped into again. 

We currently rely on 70% + of our oil to come from the MID EAST.  That number use to be 24%.  We need to become more self sustaining, become a strong nation once again. 

If you really want to see a change, write your Congressman or woman, write the editor of your paper.  Speak up and speak out.  If we all come together for a common cause, making this nation independent and financially strong again, it can happen sooner rather than later.  

7:12 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Mortgage Brokers to be under tighter scrutiny, FINALLY

Now that the cows are out of the barn, they are tightening up on mortgage brokers and making sure there are no criminals working as mortgage brokers.  You would think after the Savings and Loan melt down of the 80's they would have thought to do this then instead of now.  Don't they run the fingerprints of these people.  When you get a real estate license you get your fingerprints run through the FBI's computer.  Why on earth did they not do that with the people in charge of lending people money.

The following is from a recent article in NEWS and EVENTS, Florida Realtors.org.

The Office of Financial Regulation has allowed more than 10,000 people with criminal histories  -- including armed robbers and cocaine traffickers  -  to work in the mortgage industry since 2000.  The newspaper found that convictied felons went on to fleece consumers and lenders of at least $85 million.

The proposal represents a reversal for the longtime state regulator who has definded his agency's licensing practices since publication of the Herald's investigation.  Saxon insisted that "we do not have a systemic problem of licensing felons".

He acknowledged the standards for mortgage professionals "have not kept pace with the increasing sophistication of the mortgage industry."

His proposal asserts that Florida's mortgage crisis constitutes "an immediate danger" to the public and requires emergency measures to protect consumers from fraud and predatory lending. 

The measures present a host of restrictions on former criminals trying to enter the once-free whelling industry, including:

Banning anyone convicted of a felony involving fraud, money laundering, dishonesty and breach of trust from becoming a broker.  Despite a requirement to screen criminal backgrounds, Saxon's agency allowed people into the industry who were guilty of 2,821 financial crimes, including 922 larcenies, 752 frauds and 161 forgeries.

Requiring former crimnals such as murderers and rapists to wait 15 years from their conviction date before getting a mortgage brokers license.  (CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS.  15 years after raping or murdering someone you could get a mortgage brokers license.  What is wrong with this picture.)

Barring people guilty of misdemeanors involving fraud, dishonest dealing and moral turpitude from getting a license until five years after their conviction.  (So you only had to wait five years if you had been involved with fraud, dishonest dealings or moral turpitude.  HELLO, fraud, someone is guilty of fraud and you are going to give them a license to be a MORTGAGE BROKER.)

The proposal also requires that regulators suspend or revoke a license if they discover someone lied on their application.  The investigation found numerous cases of brokers who got their licenses even after regulators caught them lying, including one man who omitted his conviction and 17 year prison sentence for strangling his wife and dumping her body into Tampa Bay.  

License Renewal

The new rules do not include criminal background checks when mortgage brokers renew their licenses, a key to weeding out professionals who break the law after entering the industry.  The Herald found scores of brokers who were convicted of financial crimes  -  including mortgage fraud  -  and continued peddling laons without the threat of state sanctions. 

The measure also do not address the licensing of loan originators -- those who do the same job as mortgage brokers with the same access to consumers' personal financial information.  The Herald found more than 5,000 people with criminal histories working in Florida as loan originators, many of whom went on to scam consumers and lenders out of millions.

State leaders involved in mortgage industry legislation they favored the new proposals, and questioned why the agency took so long to press for changes. 

Lawmakers have complained that Saxon showed a lack of urgency in pushing for reforms and did not alert them about the need for tougher regulatory oversight.

"There is a huge question mark as to why none of this was brought up before when it really mattered, said House Minorityleader Dan Gelber, D Miami Beach.  (I guess, like I said why wasn't it put into place after the Savings and Loan Meltdown in the 80's)

Sen. Bill Posey, R - Rockledge, who chairs the committee that oversees the OFR, said he wished Saxon had proposed the changes earlier.  "We never suspected that someone could have been guilty of a felony for fraud and still have a license," he said.  

Don Saxon's resignation to be effective 9/30

 

3:56 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Sellers upset because property didn’t sell in time

We probably should all keep the following article in mind.  When we list properties where the sellers are in trouble and attempting to sale as a short sale or attempting to sale before it goes into foreclosure, I bet we are going to start seeing agents getting sued by sellers upset that their properties didn't sell in time.  Any body can sue for anything and there are attorney's out there more than happy to help their client, however misguided they might be. 

I am sure the people getting this do as I do and keep every single email I get from a client along with notes of every single phone call, just IN CASE. 

Talk to you soon. 

8:33 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Amendment 5
Category: News and Politics

4:56 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Gallon of gas price trigger to cause drilling in this country
Category: News and Politics

This morning while watching Fox News I saw where two congressmen were debating what the price per gallon should be before they decide to discuss seriously drilling for oil in this country.  The one Congressman said $5.50 a gallon, I thought that was awful, they other said $10.00 a gallon.  I thought that was Ridiculous.  Guess what they agreed.  They decided $10.00 per gallon would be their trigger.  That is giving the speculators the go ahead to start driving the prices up again.  Then to top it all off they voted to take the month of August off before resolving anything dealing with our gas problems.  I quess sitting the price trigger at $10.  a gallon was their way of giving themselves permission to take vacation.  Attached is a letter I sent my Senator letting him know what I think. 

Mel,  Today on Fox News I saw two congressmen debating what the price trigger for a gallon of gas should be in order to allow oil to be drilled in this country.  The two men agreed that once it reaches $10.  (TEN DOLLARS A GALLON) that they will then consider drilling in this country. What are these guys thinking.  They obviously are not thinking about being reelected.  Everyone of you guys needs to start thinking job security.  The people that have been elected to serve their constiuents apparently don't give a damn about the people that elected them or they wouldn't be voting to make the trigger $10.00 a gallon.  With this entire country outside of Washington, D.C. concerned about the prices of gas and what the future has to hold you guys vote to take August off without resolving anything.  It must be nice to go on vacation for a month and forget all about the worries of this country.  It would have at least given the people of this country some sense of security if our elected officials had chosen to stay and work and come up with a solution for our problems. 

Nancy Pelosi's book about saving the world is 1000 on the Amazon list.  I quess 4 people decided to read it.  If the people of this country's concern was truly saving the planet, her book would be number 1.  We are all worried about saving the planet.  I have children, grand children.  I have concerns about what the future has to hold for them.  I think there has to be a compromise. We won't have a future if we can't figure out how to save this country from certain financial collapse.  People can not afford $10.  a gallon for gas.  If we can't find a way to provide for ourselves and not rely on over 70% of our oil to come from outside this country. 

I hope President Bush calls everyone of you back to work.  Shame on all of you. 

5:33 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Points shared from a few recent articles

Early signs of an eventual recovery are starting to show up.  Existing home sales have been hovering around 5 million for the past nine months.  The inventory of completed new homes is finally declining, down 17,000 in the last four months, the fastest pace in over 20 years.

The supply of all homes available for sale in June was down 2.4% from the previous year in 18 major metropolitan areas.  That supply was about equal to the month before, a futher indication of a leveling trend.  The number of homes with foreclosure-related filings was down 3.4% nationwide in June, compared to May.

Retailers led by Wal-Mart reported better than expected same store sales for June. 

Source:  Inside Lending  CTX Mortgage Co.  through Jerry Heckman

Since Tampa's housing market bottomed out in December 2007, We have had TWO CONSECUTIVE QUARTERS OF POSITIVE GROWTH.  This is a definitive statement of recovery for our market.

Source:  Good News you can use.  Ken Ynes Licensed Laon Officer

Then you have this article, I wonder if we live in the same state. 

TIME Magazine revisits Florida's problems

We are facing our worst real estate meltdown since the Depression.  We have got a water crisis, insurance crisis, environmental crisis and budget crisis to go with our housing crisis. 

We have some flashing red lights, said Bob Graham, the former Governor and Senator.

Graham cited two key indicators of trouble in Florida:  a decline in demographic growth and a decline in per capita imcome inthe staete compared to the rest of the country.

Florida is in a mess, USF historian Gary Mormino said, I bet Florida will roar back.  It will be a very different Florida.  Source:  FAR News and Events.

I quess these guys in this last article haven't been listening to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke.  Ben Bernanke is an expert on the Great Depression.  Probably one of the most renowned experts on the Great Depression of our time.  He says that we are no where near where things were in the Great Depression.  We are not even technically in a recession.  We have not had two consectutive quarters of decline.  People are more than happy to believe the worst, before even considering the alternative information available. 

4:23 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Do you believe the news is slanted the way they want us to see and hear it?

Subject: ABC News - Suspicions confirmed!

Just in case you happened to see the ABC News piece (if you watch ABC 
News) with interviews of 5 military folks in Iraq - 3 planned to vote 
for Obama and 2 for Hillary; no mention of any McCain supporters. 
Well, here's the "Rest of the Story."

This from Major General (ret) Buckman.
My niece, Katelyn, stationed at Baluud, Iraq was assigned, with 
others of her detachment, to be escort/guard/watcher for Martha 
Raddatz of ABC News as she covered John McCain's recent trip to 
Iraq . Katelyn and her Captain stood directly behind Raddatz as she 
queried GIs walking past. They kept count of the GIs and you should 
remember these numbers. She asked 60 GIs who they planned to vote for 
in November. 54 said John McCain, 4 for Obama and 2 for Hillary. 
Katelyn called home and told her Mom and Dad to watch ABC news the 
next night because she was standing directly behind Raddatz and maybe 
they'd see her on TV. Mom and Dad of course, called and emailed all 
the kinfolk to watch the newscast and maybe see Katelyn. Well, of 
course, we all watched and what we saw wasn't a glimpse of Katelyn, 
but got a great view of skewed news. After a dissertation on McCain's 
trip and speech, ABC showed 5 GIs being asked by Raddatz how they 
were going to vote in November; 3 for Obama and 2 for Clinton. No 
mention of the 54 for McCain.

Think about this: If you don't want to forward this for fear of 
offending someone... YOU'RE PART OF THE PROBLEM! It is Time for 
America to Speak up!

7:32 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Big Oil
Category: News and Politics

This is from a recent email I received and thought I would share.

Bill Phillips spent nearly 50 years in the US oil and gas industry; most of his career was with the Phillips Petroleum Company.  Bill is a descendant of Frank Phillips.  Frank Phillips, along with his brother Lee Eldas (L.E.) Phillips, Sr., founded the original Phillips Petroleum Company in 1917 in Bartlesville , OK .   Do you remember Phillips 66 gas stations?  Phillips Petroleum Company merged with Conoco, Inc. in 2002 to form the current ConocoPhillips oil company. 
So, when Bill talks about oil and gas issues, I tend to listen - very closely. I think that you will find Bill's thoughts and facts very revealing, very compelling and very difficult to argue with. 
As you prepare to cast your crucial ballots this Fall, please think long and hard about the far-reaching, cumulative efects of the US political philosophies, policies and legislation that have contributed to the current and future US oil supply situation. 

'Big Oil' 
Did you know that the United States does NOT have any big oil companies. It's true: the largest American oil company, Exxon Mobil, is only the 14th largest in the world, and is dwarfed by the really big oil companies--all owned by foreign governments or government-sponsored monopolies--that dominate the world's oil supply.

With 94% of the world's oil supply locked up by foreign governments, most of which are hostile to the United States , the relatively puny American oil companies do not have access to enough crude oil to significantly affect the market and help bring prices down. Thus, Exxon Mobil, a  'small'  oil company, buys 90% of the crude oil that it refines for the U.S. market from the big players, i.e, mostly-hostile foreign governments. The price at the U.S. pump is rising because the price the big oil companies charge Exxon Mobil and the other small American companies for crude oil is going up as the value of the American dollar goes down.  They will eventually bleed this country into printing even more money and we will go into runaway inflation once again as we did under the Carter Democratic reign.

This is obviously a tough situation for the American consumer. The irony is that it doesn't have to be that way. The United States --unlike, say, France --actually has vast petroleum reserves. It would be possible for American oil companies to develop those reserves, play a far bigger role in international markets, and deliver gas at the pump to American consumers at a much lower price, while creating many thousands of jobs for Americans. This would be infinitely preferable to shipping endless billions of dollars to Saudi Arabia , Russia and Venezuela to be used in propping up their economies. 

So, why doesn't it happen? Because the Democrat Party--aided, sadly, by a handful of Republicans--deliberately keeps gas prices high and our domestic oil companies small by putting most of our reserves off limits to development.  China is now drilling in the Caribbean, off Cuba but our own companies are barred by law from developing large oil fields off the coasts of  Florida and California . Enormous oil-shale deposits in the Rocky Mountain states could go a long way toward supplying American consumers' needs, but the Democratic Congress won't allow those resources to be developed. ANWR contains vast petroleum reserves, but we don't know how vast, because Congress, not wanting the American people to know how badly its policies are hurting our economy, has made it illegal to explore and map those reserves, let alone develop them. 

In short, all Americans are paying a terrible price for the Democratic Party's perverse energy policies.   I own some small interests in tiny, 4 barrel-per-day oil wells in Wyoming .   We have 14 agencies that have iron-hand jurisdiction over us.   If we drop any oil on the ground when the refinery truck comes to pick up oil from our holding tanks, we are fined.  Yet down the road the state will spray thousands of gallons of used oil on a dirt road to control dirt.  When it rains that oil runs into rivers and creeks. Yet a cup of oil on the ground at our wellhead is a $50,000 EPA fine plus additional fines from state regulating agencies. They treat oil as if it were plutonium that has the potential to leak into the environment.  We are fined if our dirt burms are not high enough around a holding tank, yet the truck that picks up our oil runs down the road at 60 mph with no burm around it.  People wonder why there is no more eexploration in this country.   It's because of the regulators; people who have lived their whole lives doing nothing but imposing fines on small operators like us for doing mostly nothing. 

So, America enjoy your $4.00 per gallon gasoline.  Your dollar is now worth 0.62 Euro-Cents.  The lack of American production of GNP, the massive trade deficit (as labor markets have moved overseas to fight insanely high union imposed labor costs in America ) and the run away printing of money (backed by nothing of value here in America ) has caused the dollar to become more worthless on the international market. And that's where our oil comes from.   It's paid for with dollars that become more worthless everyday.   If we had just kept par with the Euro we'd be paying $62 dollars per barrel for oil (42 gallons) or about $1.50 instead of $2.50 a gallon for crude oil. 

What the US government also does not tell you is that it is the leaseholder and royalty recipient of most oil production and receives 25% of the gross oil sales before we pay for electricity to lift the oil, propane to keep the oil-water separators from freezing in the winters.  We pay a pumper to visit each well everyday plus we have equipment failures all the time.   We pay for that out of our 75% of gross sales. The government does not share in any expenses to run any production well.   So, if the Big Oil Companies are making record profits, then so is the federal government from it's 25% tax on every molecule of oil sold to a refinery in this country.   Why isn't the government on the stand for 'Record' profits?   What you don't see is this 25% of the sales price of crude oil being siphoned away by the government.   That money plus the road taxes, state taxes, etc. amounts to over $1 per gallon of gasoline you are buying while the governments only admits to about 50 cents per gallon. 

To all you Democrats, when you go vote for your candidate, a blazing liberal like Barrack Hussein Obama or Hillary Clinton, just keep in mind that their liberal spending habits will further decrease the value of the American dollar on the world market and your gasoline costs will hike even higher.   As they introduce more give-away programs, raise taxes on everyone to pay people not to produce or work, your dollar will continue to dwindle on the world market and you will be paying $10.00 per gallon at the next election.   Cheap hydrocarbon fuel is all over.   Enjoy!   Enjoy the fruits of your decision to elect these folks when you are there in that voting booth and you stab your pin through a Democrat's name. 

William 'Bill' Phillips 

6:00 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

It is sad what the media focuses on

The other day the Major League ALL Star Home Run Hitting Contest had a never before seen feat, a player from the Texas Rangers drove 28 baseballs out of Yankee Stadium in just a few minutes.  Did the media grad hold of that?  What did they focus on, the alledged affair between Yankee All Star A-ROD and Madonna.  The papers gave full page coverage complete with pictures to this scandal, including details about the divorce filed by A-Rod's wife. 

The press says this is the worst housing crisis since the Great Depression.  Bernanke who is probably the most renowned expert on the Great Depression would argue that this current problem does not remote resemble the 1930's. 

Yesterday it was announced that construction of new housing units surged in June, running at an annual rate of 1.066 million housing units.  Construction of new family homes was down 5.3%.  Some see this as a good things, the overhang of new homes is coming down.  The media spends it time dwelling on places like Florida and California where builders went nuts in response to orders.  The national average decline is only 10% and not the extreme 30% you hear about through the media.  Apartment Construction is up.  35% of people want to live in Apartments.  Much of the housing mess was caused by politicians demanding that this ratio be reduced by giving zero down mortgages to people who couldn't afford them.  Foreclosure sales are very brisk.  They are being purchased by people who can actually afford to pay the mortgage. 

Exerpts of what I have shared with you came from Adrian Van Ecks Mortgage and Property Hotline.  If you have not had an opportunity to sign up for his newsletters, check them out.  Go to www.vanecktillman.com

7:22 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment