Seems the credit crisis is on everyone's mind, if not blog, these days. So I will not contribute to the cacophony of lengthy new opinions on the matter, especially since I am not a financial analyst and so may be seen to have questionable credentials. :) Nonetheless, I have good instincts for self-preservation (comes from being the youngest in my fam), and feel I can't just say nothing on this topic, in the same way that if a house is on fire, I can't just walk away and let "someone else" call 911.

I already blogged a dire warning about the US dollar's problems (though I feel it's more our trade deficit and competition for oil that is responsible for that than anything else; it's just the subprime and other related credit crisises magnify the problem), but I have found out there in cyberspace a dearth of understanding of just how the subprime mess even could have happened. It seems apart from knowing that people with really bad credit got loans they shouldn't have been able to get, the details of why banks thought they could do this sort of thing seem absent most people. So here it is, the explanation. (If the one reference to a math formula in the article makes you wince, don't worry, it's the principles in it that are important.)

Ok, that's it. No more. I will refrain from this topic from now on. Or at least, I'll try.

It seems some things are truly eternal. The Shaft is no doubt one of them.

As I blogged earlier, I applied to NASA to become an astronaut. Not that I think I can actually get past the first weed-out (glasses, flat feet, asthma, you get the idea), but I cannot go to my eventual demise without at least knowing I tried to get a taxpayer-funded ride to the edges of the planet. Truth be told I only want to get out there to find out just what exactly does happen when you try to eat Jell-O in Zero-Gs. Well anyway, I got a letter from NASA (more of an envelope-- the same one the "sealed transcript" came in, taped together) with what I am assuming were the actual contents of the envelope: a letter stating I had an outstanding financial obligation with the university. It was this that the NASA people saw and had the decency to send to me.

Now I have been away from Drexel for 11 years. I have never once received any notice that I owe so much as an outstanding student activity fee to them. And to receive notice of the "obligation" by the intended recipient of the sealed envelope getting a letter saying you owe the university money? Effective I suppose but not good for alumni relations; better to just tell an alum when they call or write to order the transcript. But DU is doing quite well these days financially, and I don't think they need alumni donations to keep the wheels turning. Let this be a lesson kids: it's all about money. Everything. "Higher education" is all about money. Every institution I can think of is pretty much obsessed with one thing and one thing only: money. Now I expect this from private companies and public corporations. But from supposed "public interest" endeavors, esp. ones that are tax-exempt (colleges, churches, charities, etc.)? No, it's all about money there, too. If Drexel taught me anything, it taught me that. Not that I really needed to know by the time I went there, it had already been apparent to me for some time.

But I digress. I called the "Student Receivables" dept. and of course got voicemail.

Let it never be said that the important things in life are wont to change: the power of a smile, the soft sigh of love, the never-ending quest for money and power, and the Drexel Shaft.

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Update: I spoke to someone there who said it had been a mistake. They wanted an updated billing address (WHY?) so the account had a hold on it for that reason, but not for money. Now correct me if I am wrong here, but sending a letter essentially saying you're a deadbeat to a prospective employer sealed in a transcript envelope is grounds for a libel suit, yes?

I'm thinking of suing them if for no other reason than to make them suffer.

About 2 months ago I finally caught up to 2003 and joined Facebook. Really, not just for kids (actually you have to be 18+ to join, apparently). And while MySpace is inarguable like way kewl, Facebook is a little more interaction-oriented, which I like. So are you on Facebook? I am. If you want to "be-friend" me on Facebook, send me an email.

Oh yeah, if you go searching for me you won't find me. My account is set to "friends only". This is because I am hiding from the law, and also some woman who insists I am the father of her child. I swear, I have never seen here before in my life!!

Slow day on Rants and Raves for Rochester CL, but what else is new? This was funny, anyway.