Archive for September 2008
Extreme Paranoia
What If
What if Eskimo’s suddenly found themselves in the Sahara Dessert? if Lions found themselves in posh homes as pets? if electric power stayed on uninterrupted for 2 weeks in Victoria Island? if a drive along the Sagamu Benin expressway was devoid of a single pot hole?
The world we live in today is highly complex. As at 2005, real estate investors in the United States had no clue that trouble was brewing. As at 2006, the great American Dream was fulfilled by numerous tax payers. Working class citizens and their families were proud to be at home, in their own houses watching the NFL, NASCAR or NBA as a family unit.
It’s 2008. Suddenly, the same home is boarded up. The breadwinner is out of job. The family unit crumbles. What if the real estate market remained the same as 2004? Great institutions have crumbled. Fannie Mae, Indymac and so many billion dollar companies; Insurance giants AIG??
Look guys, I do not know what they tell you but it a disastrous situation that surpasses the impact of Katrina, Ike, twin towers, the tour bus crash in Texas and the train crash in California. This is the Great Mortgage Meltdown.
What if the real estate guy’s never showed you a house to buy? what if your apartment complex management dangled great incentives at you? what if the lenders never gave you those enticing ARMS or payment schemes or interest only payments?
What if the suitcase carrying mortgage brokers never invited the public to those weekend forums at posh hotels with free coffee and snacks which they used as avenues to enlighten dreamers about the gains of home ownership? what if they did not use examples of people who made 1000% profit in a few months?
Guess what? its possible for lions to live as pets, for Eskimo’s to adapt to the Sahara and for electric power to stay on uninterrupted in Victoria Island Lagos for 2 weeks.
The power of sixteen wheels
I have read and witnessed the impact of faith based organizations that have all turned the highway into some sort of pilgrimage destination. I have heard and read criticisms to that effect. I have been indirectly affected and can attest to massive loss of man hour time due to uncontrollable commotion at the entrances to these sites.
Non of these however comes close to the incidence that occurred in August which was perpetrated by drivers of sixteen wheelers. What occurred could best be described as an act of economic sabotage or even treason.
One of the past state administrator’s with a foresight had instigated the construction of a multi million Naira park area for truckers. Apparently, the truckers had become a menace to society as they shunned the park and continued to create homes along some stretches of the road thereby forcing motorists to squeeze through a single lane filled with pollutants from the outdated truck engines. If that was not health degrading enough, the sight of filth at this location along one of the nations busiest highways is retrogressive.
Well, with all of these and after several notices and attempts to relocate the illegal park, the legislated Government officials decided to enforce the movement by the only measure best known to stubborn men; force. The officials towed some of the trucks and confined them till a time when the others were forced to move.
The next action that occurred was shocking and unbelievable. The truck drivers took offence at the Governments action and within a jiffy, they had sabotaged the economy of a great Nation by blocking the entire highway in protest. That was the only way they felt they could show the “power of sixteen wheels”. The blockade was on for several hours based on reports from eye witnesses.
Who really is in charge here? what confidence does this sort of action give the public, what would investor’s feel about stability? what efforts are being made to enlighten the disgruntled truckers? The pathetic aspect of the issues is that 85% of the trucks are not even road worthy by international standards. Try driving behind one of them struggling to ascend a hilly terrain of the highway. The carbon monoxide attack that follows is indescribable. Hello, it’s 2008 and some issues like this should not occur.