(Artistry)What a GREAT choice of OS for this theme! You're "Stayin Alive" in this contest with Fives...

First time I've seen this song parodied. I heard the Bee Gees wrote it while sitting in the dark during an electrical blackout. Your parody explains the root of today's problems, unchecked borrowing by government and the public with no intent of repayment. You can only get away with that for a limited time.

Hobbits - Sub-prime, but in no way sub-standard. Good job here. ;D

In the US, at least, the banks were bowing to arm-twisting from a number of different POTUSes, of *both* major parties, who "encouraged" (cough) the making of loans that would never have qualified under the traditional standards, in the name of "increasing minority homeownership". Both Bill Clinton and GW Bush bragged about achieving that during their terms, but now we're stuck with the payback.

Also, about 80% of the foreclosures in the US were so-called "No-doc(umentation) loans, quickly dubbed "Liars' Loans" once the crisis broke. Without documentation of income, past and current, and assets/liabilities, anyone could say anything to qualify. Yes, your signature on the app acknowledges the clause above, that it is a felony against the US to make any false or misleading statement on a loan app to any Federally-insured or -related institution, but in all the wringing of hands for the poor, displaced homeowners, have you seen any of them actually go to jail for lying on their applications? Or even been charged?

Lots of blame to go around, and many banks weren't innocent, either, But blaming banks for obeying the laws that forced them to make these loans misses the point.

No vote, as the facts are off. *If* you want to know the *real* story, at least in the US (which undoubtedly was a major trigger for the global meltdown,

http://www.amiright.com/parody/misc/williamshakespearehamletlordpolonius0.shtml
Cheers.

Forgot to add -- my living, such as it is these days ;-(, comes from the mortgage business and related activities. So, not just an 'Ivory Tower" academic analysis, but also a couple of decades in the trenches, to this day.

TT - I know the real story, but that doesn't make for nearly as funny a parody... I don't politicize anymore - 'tis a losing battle.

Merry and Pippin today, Arwen yesterday...been some great old school stuff on here this week! Awesome job.

Thanks all, for your comments. Tommy T, I acknowledge your points, and happily concede that my words (and they were mostly mine) come almost exclusively from the perspective of the ordinary person being tired of being done over in one way or another. To put it another way, I took the populist view of the situation. But you are right, why sign up for a mega loan if you don't have the means to repay. Like Meriadoc, the political considerations I tend to give the swerve to. I am a public servant and constantly suffer the slings and arrows of the public and the media for things that are enshrined in legislation and I have no control over. As with Merry, if I took that too seriously, it would just about kill me, I think!

M & P: I understand your POV. And unquestioningly, many totally-innocent people got clobbered in the meltdown indirectly, and many directly. E. g., pension funds that invested in these loans, not knowing of the poor quality, and the individuals covered by that fund, etc. (lots more examples.)

Someone much wiser than I once said that "we get the politicians we deserve". Both of the politicians mentioned in the first comment were elected by solid margins, by an enthusiastic populace, and their "noble' goals were hailed by all of those who don't understand that actions have consequences, and that you can't magically make the unqualified qualified. So the only "innocents" here are those who didn't vote for either of those two, and who don't support the "ideals" of Robbing Hood.

Yes, as individuals, we're all subject to laws over which we have little control. It would take national, or global, change in attitude, form "What goodies will this candidate give me if I vote that way" back to the nearly-obsolete concept of "individual responsibility", which I don't see happening. Which is why I'm not optimistic about the US -- or about the world.

(Why do I fear that the Egyptians will overthrow one dictator, only to find themselves under another, who might be even worse -- as happened, say, after the Bolshevik Revolution?)

The technical quality of your parody is excellent as always, though I have qualms about bending "the real story" to make a funny parody. The reality is so full of juicy idiocies to satirize and make funny/piercing parodies...

Thanks both, for taking the time to give a thoughtful reply. Cheers!