Today's headlines were filled with good news. We've got Hannah & Ike coming to visit, and Freddie and Fannie are being marched off to their rooms for a bit of "quiet time."
Actually, Hurrican Hannah came ashore yesterday off the coast of North Carolina. Today, in the heart of Virginia, we're feeling her rath. Fortunately, according to the Weather Channel, it looks like her stepbrother Ike, who is in trail, will miss us. It appears he'll be visting the Bahamas before heading off into the Gulf of Mexico. But, with the arrival of the storms clouds also came news that the nation's two largest mortgage giants are the most recent victims of the mortgage crisis that's devasted our real estate landscape for the past three years.
On Friday, the Federal Reserve made a call on the red phone (you do remember that 3 A.M. call, don't you?) to inform Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae of its intention to place them under federal control. They'll be placed into "conservatorship". Into what, you say? According to the Fed, the good news is, the companies will continue to operate with the government backing their debt. The bad news is that their boards will be replaced, and their shareholders will be left holding the bag. Well, at least, that's what they're saying. But, let's hope it isn't the shareholders that are the only ones who'll have to pay the price for gross mismanagement. But, enough of the bad news.
For anyone that's travelled up and down I95 in Northern Virginia, rush hour traffic is not a pretty sight. The good news is, according to the recent Urban Mobility Study, the commute to Washngton D.C. ranked as the 5th worst commute in the nation. To be honest, I guess it's kind of human to feel a bit better, knowing you don't have it as bad as other folks. Besides, the actual study examinedf the 10 most wasteful cities in the country for commuters, based on fuel usage. What were the top four?
- Los Angeles
- San Francisco
- Atlanta
- San Diego
Gridlock on our nations highways is never enjoyable. With today's onboard GPS systems, traffic backups can, at times, be avoided. For those of us that live here, we can always find a way around I95. The "reroute" may take us a bit out of the way, but the added time may more than make up for the aggravation avoided. Besides, when the traffic gets bad, just remember, it could be worse.
To Continue Reading this Article, Click Here: When Finishing 5th Isn't So Bad
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