U.S. Congress approves bankruptcy overhaul bill

[JI7]

<The U.S. Congress on Thursday approved a sweeping overhaul of bankruptcy laws, making it tougher for debt-ridden Americans to wipe out their obligations and start over.

Final passage came as the House of Representatives cleared the measure, sought for years by banks and credit card companies but which opponents say is too harsh on ordinary Americans.

The bill now goes to President George W. Bush, who is expected to sign it into law.>

http://www.reuters.com/financeNewsArticle.jhtml?type=bondsNews&storyID=8185712

[fertilizeonarbusto]

1. Remember this

when the revolution comes.

[liberalnurse]

3. They are playing the chess game very well.

We will be tooo weak to revolt....only comply to the masters whims. :scared:

[DuaneBidoux]

77. I WILL NOT BELIEVE THAT!!!!!

Fuck 'em.

[Selteri]

5. Rest assured, I'll remember all of this well

and I am quite sure we will have a revolution very soon.

[renaissanceguy]

7. I sure as hell hope so.

Let the repugs go rot in their own damn country. I'd be happy to become part of the United States of Canada.

http://www.cafepress.com/liberalissues.14744291

[Demeter]

72. We Just Have To Sue Their Asses Into Bankruptcy

RICO, anyone?

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. And they shall sow winds

this is the seed of their own destruction... joe six pack down at the bar will figure it out SOON....

[Mist]

4. This will be the very steep learning curve for a lot of Red Americans n/t

[Julius Civitatus]

35. Mark the date

This bill will mean the end of the middle class in America and the re-emergence of a sort of credit-based serfdom. And don't forget what this will do to small investors and small businesses.

Corporations do rule this country completely, and they will now rule our lives even more.

[Amy6627]

56. We must get rid of the root of the problem which is Corporate

Person-hood. I am forming a Reclaim Democracy chapter in San Diego. I wish everyone would get on this bandwagon. It really is a non-partisan issue that both Repukes and Dems should unite and fight against. Why should corporations be allowed to contribute to political campaigns, they can't vote? The Supreme Court decided in 1886 that because the 14th amendment made people out of property (slaves were considered property) that means Corporations were now persons. So if they are persons, they have the protection of the 1st amendment of free speech. Since they don't have a mouth, then money is their speech. Check out these two websites:

http://www.thomhartmann.com/unequalprotection.shtml

http://reclaimdemocracy.org/personhood/

[Danmel]

6. My Congressman voted for this

I just called his office to let him know we'll remember this next time. I am so pissed off at him. What a DINO

[renaissanceguy]

8. Shame on any Democrat who voted for this

No more bullshit excuses about being 'centrist.' This bill is WRONG to vote for.

http://www.cafepress.com/liberalissues.14744291

[Danmel]

9. I totally agree

I told his office that he should be ashamed of voting for this bill and that is a disgrace that he did. I am very disappointed.

[Amy6627]

59. Shame on ANY politician that put Corporate power above

humans!

http://reclaimdemocracy.org/personhood/

[barb162]

10. Does anyone think corporations don't run this country?

The corporations OWN this Congress and administration lock, stock and barrel. (except for a few who vote against them and who are powerless because they are few)

[xchrom]

11. indeed.

[orleans]

12. which dem senators voted for it???

[Lone_Star_Dem]

38. Here's the link to the final roll call

http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2005/roll108.xml#Y

[Freddie Stubbs]

13. U.S. Congress approves bankruptcy overhaul bill

Thu Apr 14, 2005 03:35 PM ET
WASHINGTON, April 14 (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress on Thursday approved a sweeping overhaul of bankruptcy laws, making it tougher for debt-ridden Americans to wipe out their obligations and start over.

more: http://www.reuters.com/financeNewsArticle.jhtml?type=bondsNews&storyID=8185712

[nadinbrzezinski]

14. and so they shall saw winds....

this folks are teh seeds of their destruction... they are just too supid to realize it... sooner or later joe six pack will fig're this out

[Freddie Stubbs]

15. Only the ones who declare bankrupty will care

This is not an issue that is on most people's radar.

[nadinbrzezinski]

17. In lean times bankrupcies increase

just wait... the misery index is about to go up...

[Freddie Stubbs]

21. But are those who declare bankruptcy likely to vote

Those in the lower economic brackets are less likely to vote. Will those who voted for this pay a political price? I'm not too sure that they will.

[Judi Lynn]

22. It wouldn't be on most people's radar before they were blindsided

by catastrophic illness, sudden loss of income, massive hospital bills, which we've heard discussed at length lately as the common causes of bankruptcy, after all.

Most people simply do their best and wouldn't dream of getting this lost in the world if it weren't an absolute necessity. It's a hideous stain on their credit history.

[Skittles]

57. you are correct, Judi

the people I know who have declared bankruptcy were dismayed, mortified, humilitated. And NONE of them ever thought it could happen to them.

[Jacobin]

43. 1,600,000 FAMILIES last year

[UpInArms]

16. Marketwatch: Congress passes bankruptcy overhaul legislation

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?guid={84CB01EE-C2CD-488A-83BB-905F6002A924}&siteid=mktw

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - In a major victory for the credit industry, the House of Representatives on Thursday voted 302-126 to pass legislation that will make it tougher for consumers to avoid repaying debt by filing for bankruptcy. The bill, which cleared the Senate last month, now goes to the White House, where President Bush has said he's eager to sign it. The bill institutes a means test for bankruptcy filers based largely on median state incomes.

...very short newsblurb...

:(

[Freddie Stubbs]

18. There are only 231 Republicans in the House

So it looks like a significant number of Democrats voted for this bill.

[redqueen]

19. Banking / credit industry lobbyist payola goes a lot of places...

not just to republicans.

[Freddie Stubbs]

26. And don't forget that many of these Congressmen

have constituents who work in the banking industry.

[nadinbrzezinski]

20. cross check this with the DLC list

[Freddie Stubbs]

29. Kendrick Meek is a liberal, not a DLCer

He voted for the bill: http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2005/roll108.xml

[Freddie Stubbs]

31. Rahm Emanuel is a DLCer

and he voted against the bill.

[barb162]

67. I like Rahm; wish he was my district; he voted nay

[barb162]

28. "Bought off" Democrats

[AlCzervik]

23. roll call vote link

http://clerk.house.gov/cgi-bin/vote.asp?year=2005&rollnumber=108

[Freddie Stubbs]

24. 73 Democrats voted 'yes'

[AlCzervik]

25. shame on them

[xchrom]

27. if only.

lizards like this -- be they dem or repuke -- have no shame.

[Zorra]

34. Not one single republican voted against this bill. Not a one.

Republicans are evil.

As for the 73 Dems that voted for this bill...we will never forget.

You are traitors.

[kysrsoze]

41. That's what really disgusts me. The pubs ALL vote the same way

You almost never see any of them diverge from the party line. What a bunch of stingy, sadistic, bootlicking pussies.

[Skittles]

60. they are goose-steppers

pure and simple

[Freddie Stubbs]

63. Exactly. 73 Democrats were independant-minded enough to vote for what

they thought was right rather than listening to party leaders.

[Zhade]

76. Do you support this bill?

NT!

[barb162]

68. the pugs vote like an army, no dissonance. Why did those damn 73

democrats vote yes?!!! What credit card companies are hurting, what banks???

[orleans]

30. anyone know which "democratic" senators voted for it?

[Freddie Stubbs]

32. There were a lot of them

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=1&vote=00044

[MaineDem]

33. Michaud of Maine voted yes

I'm very disappointed

[Zhade]

75. Reading over your posts...

...especially your quickness to offer apologia for those who voted for this assrape of the working class and poor, I have to ask: do you support this bill?

[Zorra]

36. 4/20/05: Buy absolutely nothing and stay home from work, keep the kids

home from school.

An American family day of protest against a government that is trying to crush working American families.

[Freddie Stubbs]

45. What a day to pick for yor protest!

4/20;-)

[Kweli4Real]

37. I read on MSN ...

That one of the Democratic supporters of the bill said that the bill would benefit her constitutency "that work hard, pay their bills and live within their means." Okay, fine. That's the lobbyist bought and paid for line.

But what about those that worked hard, lived within their means and paid their bills ... until they suffered a heart attack while working mandatory overtime during this jobless recovery and then lost their job (i.e., health insurance) when their 13 weeks of Family Medical Leave expired and the company they worked for refused to provide them with a light duty assignment?

But I got angry when she said that she had been threatened by other Democrats for her support of the bill. She went on about how her peers were attacking the wrong target. They should have been attacking the Republicans that wrote a bad bill and then refused to allow amendments.

Wait a minute ... it would seem to me ...

A responsible legislator:

1) would not vote for a bad bill. Even if parts of it "benefited his/her constituency."

2) Would not vote for a bad bill where amendments are disallowed.

3) On principle, would not vote for any legislation that was pushed through in a decidedly undemocratic fashion.

When are we going to wake up and hold our legislators accountable for their votes? The corporate interests certainly do.

[Skittles]

62. you are so on target, Kweli

welcome to the DU :hi:

[susu369]

39. You can pass a law (created by the credit card industry)

but you still can't get blood from a turnip. This is not going to work out like the loan sharks are expecting, IMHO.

Sign it with glee, bu$h*....but you may not have the last laugh.

Right now I am ashamed to be a card-carrying Democrat.

[youspeakmylanguage]

40. I never thought I would really, really mean this...

...but apparently, as a country, we're F*CKED!

[classics]

42. This bill will have the desired effect.

As American consumers start to realize that a credit card is a ticket to a slaves life, the long standing tradition of free spending on credit will suddenly stop.

It wont happen right away, but as stories of outragous creditor abuse start to circulate, it will happen suddenly.

Lets face is, most of our economy is driven by people buying things on credit, things they really do not NEED and certainly will learn to do without, as painful as that will be for most people, when a large amount of fear starts entering into the equation.

In the end this is going to cause a major change in the way Americans view thier ability to spend, and will drive down the profitiability of the American luxury economy in a big way.

As people also start to realize that being human, and eventually getting sick, is being used by Corporations and Government to create a new slave class, the push for universal healthcare will become unstoppable.

[madmark]

66. This is only conceivable silver lining one can hope for, however

bilions of loans have already been extended under the old rules and now those are being to changed to the borrowers detriment and these new negative terms will apply to all those billions in debt that people already owe. I would hope people would stop using the insidious product, but the real problem is all those people already trapped. This bill makes that trap for them permanent. And this is millions of people.

[Overseas]

44. Sad day for all. Hope voters remember... eom...

[eek]

46. Find out where yer Rep's $$$ came from

http://www.opensecrets.org

[cosmicdot]

79. that could be a 'special' thread of its own ...

Representatives who voted against the people re Bankruptcy Bill


The subject: Chris Cox, R-CA, voted against the people, and represents Corporate America

The portfolios are virtually 'a constituency' of their own.

2004

PAC Contribution Breakdown
2003-2004 PAC Contributions: $475,656

opensecrets.org enables one to get further breakdowns by industry and sub-industry, which helps to make categories like "Energy" and "Finance" speak louder ...

Business
(97.4%)

Agribusiness
$8,000

Communic/Electronics
$71,000

Construction
$29,300

Defense
$13,960

Energy/Nat Resource

includes donations from BP America; ChevronTexaco; ConocoPhillips; Exxon Mobil; Halliburton Co; Occidental Petroleum; etc.

$33,991

Finance/Insur/RealEst

includes American Bankers Assn; Bank of America; Citigroup Inc;
Financial Services Roundtable; Providian Financial; Capital One Financial

$82,750

Health
$113,074

Lawyers & Lobbyists
$21,394

Transportation
$55,499

Misc Business
$34,500



Top Industries

The top industries supporting Christopher Cox are:

1 Lawyers/Law Firms $63,894
2 Pharmaceuticals/Health Products $59,636
3 Health Professionals $58,363
4 Retired $51,300
5 Automotive $49,000
6 Computers/Internet $45,605
7 Securities & Investment $43,300
8 Real Estate $43,050
9 General Contractors $31,350
10 Air Transport $27,750
11 Republican/Conservative $26,229
12 Accountants $23,875
13 Misc Finance $18,300
14 Insurance $17,750
15 Commercial Banks $17,500
16 Health Services/HMOs $17,000
17 TV/Movies/Music $16,500
18 Oil & Gas $16,125
19 Lobbyists $14,700
20 Beer, Wine & Liquor $14,500


Top Contributors

1 Latham & Watkins $19,825
2 Fluor Corp $18,591
3 Toyota Motor Sales USA $18,250
4 Allergan Inc $18,000
5 L'Garde Inc $10,750
6 American Medical Assn $10,000
6 Automotive Free International Trade PAC $10,000
6 National Cable & Telecommunications Assn $10,000
6 United Parcel Service $10,000
10 National Assn of Home Builders $9,000
11 Allianz $8,000
11 KPMG LLP $8,000
13 Merrill Lynch $7,675
14 Cooperative of American Physicians $7,500
14 National Auto Dealers Assn $7,500
16 PacifiCare Health Systems $7,000
16 Piper Rudnick LLP $7,000
18 DuPont Aerospace $6,750
19 American Bankers Assn $6,500
20 Associated Builders & Contractors $6,000
20 National Assn of Realtors $6,000
20 National Beer Wholesalers Assn $6,00

http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.asp?CID=N00007124&cycle=2004

[Yavin4]

47. My Prediction of A 2006 Economic Collapse Gets Closer and Closer

I read the other day that a lot of Americans are using their credit cards to pay for the rapidly rising gas prices. Talk about pouring gas on a fire. This bill will strip away a lot of consumer spending. In the end, people will stop using their credit cards once they learned that it may ruin their lives forever. I've only had four of them, and I've paid off two of them in full. By the end of the year, I will have the other twoo paid off, and then I'm forever done with them.

[alfredo]

48. I just sent a letter to my congressman and told him that

the American people are wising up and are getting angry. I used my veterans mailing list as an example. I told him that when I first signed on, there was only one other person besides myself who opposed bush, now there is only one that supports him.

[left15]

49. Credit card debt is unsecured.

Cerdit card debit is still an unsecured load, the banks will still have to sue you to get back the money you owe them, or does this bill change that.

[PassingFair]

55. The bad news is this DOES change that...

The GOOD news is.....well, there IS no good news...

[namvet73]

50. I am doing everything in my power...

to avoid all use of credit cards. I have avoided purchases that I might otherwise have made. I will use cash whenever possible, even if I have to drive somewhere to avoid an on line purchase. I am fed up with credit card companies and their tricks to try to get people in more debt.

Some people will have a harder time doing it, but I hope those who can afford to do so will pay off their credit cards and fight back by going out of their way to stop using them.

Even on eBay, I stopped using Paypal and pay with money orders even if it is an inconvenience.

I am sorry for small online businesses who use Paypal for payment, but this is how I am trying to protect myself and fight back.

[left15]

61. I put everyting on my credit card

I get 1% cash back everywhere, and 5% cash back on gas stations and drug stores.

no annual fees, and I pay it off every month. I end up getting $300 back every year.

They are paying me to use their card.

[namvet73]

64. I used to, when...

I had lots of money to spare. We no longer have much money to spare, so we have to be more careful. We lost a lot of income due to outsourcing, layoff and underemployment.

I used to put everything on credit and pay it off immediately. Now I put very little on it and pay it off immediately.

Our vacations have to be shorter and cheaper. We have to buy more things used, etc., etc. But, we have no complaints. I find all the things I have given up I haven't missed.

We put more in investment and save first before buying when possible.

[DuaneBidoux]

74. Good for you....keep doing it exactly like that

Unfortunately all are not so fortunate to have that luxury.

[sandnsea]

78. No business is paying them

Every time you use your card, the business pays 2-3% fee to the credit card company too. Having everybody use credit cards is another way to squeeze small business out, it's hard to make a profit with all those fees.

[caledesi]

81. SnS...THANK YOU. It's 2-3% for Visa/MC and 5% for AMEX. nt

[caledesi]

80. You pay off your credit card every month?

Must be nice.

ONE percent and a hugh FIVE percent is a crock. I am not saying you don't get this return, but 1 and 5%? Puhleeze...so if you charge even $200, you get a whopping $10 back? Wow!

5% on gas and drug stores? Again, another big whoop! You pay, maybe $30 and get $1.50 "discount." Now, that's a deal I could live without.

I have worked in sales, and as anyone in sales "knows," there is an "automatic" 10% discount when push comes to shove. It's a "gimmee."

edit: usual stuff

[CAMANY]

83. Let me guess

Citibank dividend card?

[0007]

51. We're screwed folks!! And the politicians we supported

sold us out!!

[barb162]

69. absolutely; voters are garbage to these bastards.

[wallwriter]

52. They should allow individuals

To do things like issue bonds, increase the money supply and change interest rates unilaterally. That's what governments do. Isn't it hilarious that the government that is regulating bankruptcy rules is itself nearly bankrupt? (I'm sure someone said this in an earlier post, but I couldn't resist).

[ignatius 2]

53. When will we see a corporate bankruptcy bill

so that slimeball operations like worldcom and enron, who suck off the government teat,pay little or no taxes and fuck their employees pension and 401k plans while the top dogs are stashing their cash away can't reorganize and do it all over again.

While Americans sleepwalk, they are being raped by the GOP.

[SlavesandBulldozers]

54. bahhaha

good one. a corporate bankruptcy bill, oh man stop you ARE KILLING ME. whoa. ill have to remember that.

:rofl:

im not making fun of you, the thought of it is just so outrageous in this day and age.

[ignatius 2]

58. I know it is funny but these big corporations send jobs overseas,

domicile in Bermuda or the Cayman islands to avoid taxes,do away with pension plans and cook the books so the bottomline looks good and top management can make big bucks.I read an article this week that said an average CEO makes 500 times what their average worker makes.

Most individual bankruptcies are caused by a major illness. How unfair that many will not be able to start fresh,particularly when 45Million Americans have no health care.

It is all so screwed up and just plain wrong.

[SlavesandBulldozers]

85. it's funny because it's sad

as sad as that is.

[yamblaster200]

65. bankruptsy

I'm in the process of filing right now. What happened to me is my girl is in school and was working part time. I had a job that required me to work 6 days a week with overtime in between. We had bills that we were easily paying. Then it seemed like everything happened all at once. She started her actual nursing program, which is very intensive, and couldn't work anymore. I lost my overtime and got a pay cut, and the cost of everything just started to skyrocket. We made it about 6 monthes to a year by juggling things around, but finally i sat down and figured out how much my bills were a month and it didn't equal what I was making. I felt I had no choice. Now what would someone in a situation like that do after this crap passes? You'll lose everything. My mother works at a job that pays a very good hourly wage. However they haven't had a raise in 15-20 yrs. The company has been trying to get the people to take a pay cut, but there are too many old timers there that just won't go for it. So what they did is created a new position, and all new employees start in this position, making $9.00/hr. Half the wage of everyone else. Now they are knocking back others to that wage, by adding other duties to their jobs that they don't know, and if they don't know how to do it they get cut. What happens to someone that has been making 19-20 dollars an hour for 20 yrs, and has all of their bills set up for that pay rate, what happens to them when all of the sudden they are now making $9.00 an hour? Sometimes you have no choice but to file.

[Lars39]

71. Sometimes there's just things that happen beyond your control.

I hope everything works out all right for you and yours.

[Samantha]

70. I think we should establish a national "no charge" day

to send a message.

I have two credit cards. One of them (VISA) increased my credit limit $2,000 last week. I did not ask for this increase. I am sure they want me to go further in debt and start down the road many Americans are traveling.

I have decided to pay off both my credit cards. I am doing this in protest of this new bankruptcy law.

I think we should establish a day and pay cash for everything that day. Let's send a message. You can't control us. We don't have to do business with you. Any if you start working against our better interests, we will drop you like a too-hot-to handle potato.

[cosmicdot]

82. I agree that we need to kick things up a notch or two ...

... they may have the Diebolds controlling our votes ... but, we do have some power of the purse ...

the corporate buck is what's controlling the politicians doing this to us ... they don't seem to listen to our emails, calls, letters, etc.

what would our Founders do?

[DuaneBidoux]

73. they plant the seeds of their (and unfortunately our) destruction

Well, let's rip a little more from the functioning economy and give it to the five or ten percent at the top...that should really help retail sales!!!!

My friends the clock is now officially ticking and the middle classes are approaching the point of a weariness from which they will not recover.

Let's get our shit together. Our time is coming...and it is they who are handing it to us on a silver platter. If we miss the opportunity we will have nobody to blame but ourselves.

[namvet73]

84. Start a :finance charge" diversion fund....

We probably weren't the worst off, but our Visa up to almost $5000.00.
Our monthly finance charge was $100! We struggled to pay more than that, but we had other expenses, such as medical and some emergencies.
The credit was built up because we took a 1 week vacation to Maine, even with moderately priced motels. We have one pet who has diabetes. (We don't put happy pets to sleep just because they are sick) SO, we had to put him in a special boarding, which gave him insulin shots and takes care of his bowel problems. It all added up.

I was getting more and more angry that VISA was taking $100 for themselves every month. I vowed to do everything I could to get out of it.

We have 3 cards, a private one for me and for my wife for our own discretionary spending and one joint one for other joint ventures and necessities. We will never have more than three.

We decided to dip into our retirement fund to pay it off. You know, the kind of funds that DUBYA wants people to put money into instead of Social Security! We paid it off and I started "finance charge" diversion fund. Now, we don't have the $100/month finance charge. We now bill ourselves and then pay $100.00 into savings instead. We don't plan any vacation we cannot pay for immediately. So, people who depend on tourism will suffer.

We will visit our relatives in MO (we live in NJ) in the fall, after we have SAVED the money to pay for it. I had another idea. We also have more money to give to our charities.

So, now what the credit card companies used to get in interest is going into our savings and to the poor. The credit card companies are not getting it anymore. We vowed take care of our vehicles and make them last and buy used ones. No more new cars. Christmas gifts will be cheaper.

I hope these ideas spread and the one's who can afford it can start to choke off the credit card companies and help the poor pay off their debt at the same time.

My 23" computer monitor smoked and quit. It is a ViewSonic. It was under warranty, but Viewsonic wanted me to pay $160 shipping to send the old one back to the other coast. Instead, I dumped it into recycling and bought a second hand 17". (That was the second ViewSonic that lasted 3 years or less.) No more Viewsonic. No more 23". I find I don't miss it, but I might go as high as 19", but I'm going to look for a used one.

There are all kinds of ways, many of us can revolt. We also need a list of reps who voted for the bill so we can vote them out, whether they are R or D or just don't vote for them at all and let them know why.

I don't believe we're all "fucked." You would be surprised at the luxuries you can give up and won't miss. It will give me great pleasure NOT to get HD radio HDTV and Satellite Radio. If my large screen TV goes, replace it with a used portable. Most of the stuff on TV is crap and some of the people turning out this crap are making over $1,000,000 a show with a laugh track.

It didn't used to be like this. I WAS a well paid software developer (they call them IT professionals), but most of those jobs have been off-shored. I happily paid off all the bills without a care for years. Then my profession dried up.

We're not poor. But, we see the future and we're doing what we can to protect it. We also donate to the poor, whether it be money or rummage sales.