6 I The Behrend Beacon
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, of prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to
Dear Erie County,
By Christopher Alphen
.+tall writer
cjasoss psu.edu
You need to he more of a college
town. No offense. hut with a com-
Hued population of about 12,000 col
lege studats, the colleges in town ~tre
all begging. Mercvhurst College.
Gannon UniversitN. Edinboro, tux!
Penn State Behrend me all asking,
please Erie. he more of a college
Please stop making laws that (..k)n't
allow us to li‘e in houses together.
Erie County recently has implemented
and entOrced gun ordinance that won't
allow tour unrelated individuals to live
with one another in the same house.
This is an obvious attempt to prevent
college students from living together.
Hey residents of Erie, when you
moved new . the college did you not
notice it? There are going to be house
parties late Friday and Saturckiy nights
Sorry, you should have noticed the
campus belt re you moved in
I don't think the Police have noticed
the college campuses in town. either.
Especially the Pennsylvania State
Police who are a common visitor at
the University Gates Apartments.
"They hang around just looking to
bust a kid lint intoxication. Even it
they itren't causing any harm
Freshman Richie Vetica tells me. Kids
are drinking underage at an apartment
complex full of college students across
from a college campus. Why is this a
shock? WhN, is this a problem? Be
more of a college town Erie and (ion't
hand out underage violations because
kids are harmlessly walking back to
their place at one in the morning. It's
The Beacon is always
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Want to write about movies or music?
All you have to do is email any of the editors
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The banking meltdown:
By Edward Miseta
Led mur in Economic % a BehlUnd
crud 1)5 fa p,,u.edu
I think ever None in this count.n„
kiums the current recession was caused
in large part. h\ the meltdown in the
mortga.:. , e industry. The question is how
and why it happened. What exactly led
to the conditions that eventually
brought down so many large banks
investment companies'? If you listen to
the media and politicians, you would
think greedy investors on Wall Street, it
not capitalism itself, were to blame.
But dig a little deeper and you get a
very different picture.
The seeds of this problem were plant
ed by President Jimmy Carter and a
Democratic Congress back in 1977. The
Community Reinvestment Act (CRA),
signed into law that year, was intended
to eliminate discrimination in the lend
ing process. It was hared that hanks
were designating certain neighborhoods
as "no lending areas. - The areas were
frequently those inhabited by immi-
grants and minorities. The law was a
good one. Discrimination in any form
should not be tolerated.
Even with CRA, many families with
poor credit and low incomes were still
not getting mortgages. Banks make
Beacon Thumbs Up
/
41.9
- New writers
- All American Rejects
- Anti-biotics
- Air freshener
just not reasonable.
Please Erie businesses. we are beg
ging ion, have somewhere where we
can get tool at 3 a.m. in the morning
on the weekends. 1 feel everything
closes around here at 9:30, - Chlesea
Demay, a sophomore studying
Political Science, tells me. "There
should he more 24/7 restaurants around
between the lour schools: . Demay
aikls. There is always McDonald's
dive-through on Buffalo that is 24/7,
hut that is neither safe nor convenient.
"I feel extremely frustrated \\ hen it's 3
a.m. and I'm hungry and there's noth
ing I can get to eat. - Demay shares
with me. If there was one place that
delivered all night long to all four
school campuses. I ‘‘mild invest a lot
money in them.
Please have the buses run later. col
lege students like to stay out at the
hiu - s till 3 a.m. "It's ridiculous how
early the buses stop Ruining. How do
you expect us to get hack to campus
safely? A taxi ride is iva) too expen
sive.- Angelica Stoltzfus, a junior
expresses to me. "It is absurd. - If the
buses ran later. they \‘ould he full
Thurscla), through Saturday nights
heading hack to each respective cam
pus full of impaired college students
Erie. can you maybe have a few
concerts in town? Like, v.ood banth
that college kids enjoy, please. "Erie is
a city with a ton of potential: it just
needs to live up to it. It can be a great
college town with more concerts
downtm‘n. - Jeff Hulteren tells me, a
junior at Mercy hurst College. Without
a doubt. between the three schools in
Erie, there could he definite space tor
an awesome concert in Erie.
Have an opinion?
Want to write about sports?
Like to take pictures?
money when loans are repaid. Non-per
forming loans fre not profitable and are
therefore not attractive to lenders. It has
nothing to do with discrimination: it is
simply good underwriting practice to
avoid high-risk loans.
In 1994 the situation changed dramat
ically. President 13111 Clinton skilled
new legislation making it easier tOr
families with had credit to obtain loans.
The United Nations International
Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Racial Discrimination stated
that people have a "right - to housing.
No money'? No job'? No credit'? No
problem. You deserve a mortgage and
we will take other people's money to
make sure you get one.
Thereafter, additional pressure was put
on banks to make had loans. To ensure
banks went along with the ridiculous
scheme. Clinton's Treasury Secretary
Robert Rubin rewrote the CRA, requir
ing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. two
government entities that purchased
mortgages from banks, to start buying
the subprime loans. Many of these
mortgages were adjustable rate loans,
which are a had idea I'm good borrowers,
hut pure suicide for subprime house
holds. Fannie and Freddie took the risky
mortgages, bundled them together, and
sold them to banks and investment
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• ,r
PERSPECTIVES
The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances
Over the past few years, I have taken
the position of the local "shoulder to
cry on in my group of friends.
Whenever someone needs to vent or
blow oft steam, they came to me.
Maybe it's because I refuse to judge
other people, I give decent advice, or
that I genuinely care: but they come to
me and I like the job. the responsibili
ties and insights that come with it. I'm
always willing to listen to whatever
someone has to say because everyone
needs an outlet. and I proudly take on
the load.
However, over the years I've noticed
an unfortunate trend in the tales of woe
that I hear. Seldom are anxieties of oth
ers the results of illness, grades, or
other natural causes. The majority of
the time, their despair is caused by
some other person just being a dick. At
Let's go back to the good ol' days
When I entered this world, my family
lived comfortably in a modest home in
the quaint suburbs of Pittsburgh. I can
remember the hours I spent with my
family playing board games and taking
family trips that I feel have greatly
impacted who I am today. However, one
Christmas morning this all changed.
Santa had delivered to me my very first
video game system: the brand new
Super Nintendo.
I began to play Super Mario until my
thumbs bled, and it was as if a whole
new world opened up. Around the same
time, computers were becominrrnare ,
and more atibrdable for families, and our
shift from reality to a virtual world
began. As my eyes began to open to
this enormous influx of new technolo
gy, I instantaneously became addicted.
As time went on, slight modifications
were made to almost everything. Any
problem or annoyance was seemingly
fixed by the implications of these new
technoloo.ies.
why it happened and who is to blame
firms that were looking for investment
opportunities. All the pieces of this cri
sis were now in place. All we needed
was a spark to set things off.
A Few Warning Flares
Not everyone was blind to the finan
cial crisis that was building. In 1999,
The New York Times noted "Fannie
Mae is taking on significantly more
risk" and "may run into trouble in an
economic downturn." In 2002, the Bush
administration also sent out a warning,
noting in its budget request that Fannie
and Freddie could cause trouble in finan
cial markets. A year later, the adminis
tration requested much stronger over-
Unfortunately, many high-ranking
democrats did not see things the same
way. Barney Frank, current chairman of
the House Financial Services
Committee, and Rep. Maxine Waters
both stated that there was no crisis. In
2003 Frank said he wanted to "roll the
dice a little bit more", while Waters
again stated that Republicans were "try
ing to fix something that wasn't
broke.'
In 2004 and 2005, more warnings
were sounded to our politicians, this
time by Federal Reserve Chairman Alan
Greenspan and Treasury Secretary John
Snow. Their concern prompted Sen.
By Neil James Peters
staff writer
njpsoB3(a psu.edu
By Glenn Beswick
staff writer
gshso63(a)psu.edu
Sadist insanity
first this just seemed to be a high
school trend brought on by immaturity,
but now that I'm in college, I'm sur
prised by how little things have
changed.
Honestly, at what point do people
stop acting like twelve year olds and
grow up? Them is no longer any
excuse to justify this kind of behavior.
We are not middle schoolers in the
height of puberty and hormonal chaos.
We are legal adults and should act as
such. It is almost a laughable concept
that anyone should have to ask a per
son over the age of 19 to "play nice
with the other kids" and "not start any
fights."
For example, a friend from high
school called me to complain about
how an ex-boyfriend had recently been
systematically destroying her reputa
tion back home through lies and half
truths. To this, I simply responded
with a hearty, "What the hell?" At
what point do people start taking
responsibility for their actions and
But at what cost? I would argue at the
cost of our happiness. Technological
advancement, despite what many believe
is not always progressive. The Internet
and cell phones have given us unlimited
access to almost anything we want or
need. I feel, however, that this has led
to a cultural shift in values that has
been severely detrimental to our happi-
The very things we have created to
solve our society's problems have led to
more and more inconveniences. The
unmatched speed and effectiveness of
computers in today's world has created
an annoyingly impatient culture. In the
work place these technologies have
eliminated countless jobs and have peo
ple.working like crazy to keep up with
'their increasing workloads as bosses
now expect jobs to be completed faster
than ever.
We have become so enslaved by our
own technology that Marx would be
rolling over in his grave calling for a
revolution. Joking aside, this has carried
over into our homes as well. As if par
enting wasn't hard enough, parents now
have to try and raise children in an age
John McCain to sponsor new legisla
tion on the mortgage industry. Every
democrat on the Senate Banking
Committee would later vote against the
reforms. Sen. Chuck Schumer noted
that Fannie and Freddie had "done a
very, very good job."
Former President Clinton himself
stated in 2008 that democrats bore some
responsibility for the crisis by resisting
republican efforts to tighten up Fannie
and Freddie. incidentally, Clinton last
week told reporters that the economy
would not have tanked had he still been
in office. If you look up "chutzpah" in
the dictionary, you will now see
Clinton's smiling face.
Up In Smoke
The spark that this powder keg needed
came a few years ago when the Fed
finally began to raise interest rates.
Subprime borrowers with adjustable rate
loans could no longer afford their pay
ments. Foreclosure rates soared and
financial institutions that invested in
these mortgages realized they were hold
ing garbage. Some failed, others needed
a bailout. Fannie and Freddie, the dar
lings of the Democrats, were bankrupt
and in need of $2OO billion of taxpayer
money. It's not as if no one saw it
coming.
Friday, February 20, 2009
grow the hell up? Yes, I'm sure he's
sad over how she broke up with him
months ago, but I think that its time
he got himself off the cross, used the
wood to build a bridge and got over his
personal river of self pity.
I'll say it again because it bears
repeating: What the hell? When did
being a decent human being go out of
fashion? Not even animals emotionally
torment each other like the way
humans do. At least they have the
decency to just kill their prey and
move on. I'm well aware that chivalry
is cad (or at least comatose), but this
kind of behavior is just pissing all
over its grave (or hospital bed). Can't
we at least pretend to be civilized or at
least think of the ramifications of our
actions before we grab our torches and
pitchforks? If you are a jerk and your
answer to this plea is "no," then you
suck. If you said "yes," then congratu
lations, you officially have a soul.
Enjoy it, because as far as I can tell,
they are hard to come by now-a-days
of interne porn and child predators.
One cannot forget cell phones which
have, along with computers, caused
people to let virtual lives take over face
to face interaction, completely lacking
in any shred of emotional contact which
I feel is necessary to the happiness of
an individual.
I am not saying that technological
advancements made in the last twenty
years are completely lacking necessity
or practicality, nor am I calling for cen
sorship of any sort. I am simply saying
that we need to evaluate these relatively
new technologies rather than instantly
accepting them into our homes. I mean
sure, iPhones can connect to endless
amounts of information on the intemet,
or allow for instant contact with anyone
on your buddy list. But is all of that
truly necessary? Were normal cell
phones really that ineffective?
If I could leave you with one mes
sage, it would be to back away from
your computer, turn off your cell
phone, and spend time with the ones
you love face to face. Life is already
short enough. Get out and enjoy the
things virtual reality can't create.
What is even more disturbing is the
list of politicians who, during this fias
co, were stuffing their pockets with
cash from Fannie and Freddie. The top
three recipients were all democrats:
Chris Dodd, Barack Obama, and John
Kerry. Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi,
and Hany Reid were also in the top 20.
Republicans are not without blame,
comprising eight of the top 20 spots.
From 1989 to 2008, Fannie and Freddie
paid out $4.8 million to politicians we
entrusted to monitor the entities. In the
business world, this conduct would
result in jail time. In Washington DC,
it's all in a day's work.
I guess what annoys me the most is
the complete and utter lack of responsi
bility. Not a single politician seems to
have the courage to step forward and
say, "It was our fault. The market was
working fine, and we screwed it up." In
fact, their finger pointing at Wall Street
and capitalism in general is enough to
make me retch.
It now appears the cost to fix the
meltdown will run in the hundreds of
billions of dollars. It would be nice if
the politicians who took money from
the two entities would be willing to pay
it back, while simultaneously issuing
their apology to the American people. I
won't hold my breath.
Beacon Thumbs Down
, . .
- The snow is back
- Honey dew
- Stomach flu
- Smelly roommates