‘Plain Vanilla’ Philosophy Elizabeth Warren has gotten the most attention as a possible nominee as the first consumer financial-affairs regulator, while another White House candidate has been waiting in the wings. Treasury Department Assistant Secretary Michael Barr is well-known in Washington for his ‘plain vanilla’ banking philosophy and has spent years calling for stricter curbs on the banking industry.
Coates’ Call to Arms Huffington Post writer David Coates likens the foreclosure crisis to an itch that you can’t scratch. With one out of every four homeowners in America in danger of foreclosure, Coates argues the housing situation is no longer just politically and economically intolerable but now morally intolerable.
Section 8 Smorgasbord Some recipients of Section 8 government funding are benefiting from the financial crisis by scooping up empty, luxury properties. Areas that have been hardest hit, such as Las Vegas and Antioch, CA, are seeing a soaring amount of Section 8 properties in highly desirable neighborhoods
Biking Statesman The Democratic candidate for governor in Colorado and current Denver mayor, John Hickenlooper, talks housing, transportation and smart growth with Grist. Money quote: “As more people become conscious of health, air quality, the billions of dollars we send to foreign dictatorships to import oil …all things being equal, you’d want to be on a bike.” NHC and the Center for Housing Policy will be talking about these issues in Hickenlooper’s home town with two can’t-miss events in September.
Images: Smorgasbord platters via thegoddessblogs.com, and John Hickenlooper riding around his block, via theurbanbrain.com