Bailout and Speculation

Seven years down the road from the 2008-2009 Wall Street bailout -- that in real dollars totaled more than the New Deal programs, World War II and the Marshall Plan combined -- this massive transfer of public wealth to the private finance sector is now putting another wave of people out of their homes due to real estate speculation.

The problem is that there are not enough alternatives for investing that much money, which explains why rents are spiraling out of control in San Francisco, Portland and Seattle--compelling the governors of Oregon and Washington to declare a homeless state of emergency.