By Ronald Jasgur

Why is it that the people screaming loudest about their housing problems are those who can’t or won’t pay their bills? And why are our elected officials and this year’s crop of political hopefuls pandering to them?

I know, I know.  So many folks are struggling in this economy as a result of the housing crisis and it’s politically unpopular to suggest we shouldn’t be trying to help our neighbors…especially those who need it.

I’m not running for office, so I can call it straight.  It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that those who have lost their homes and those who can’t keep up with their modified mortgage payments aren’t likely to be contributing dollars to political campaigns. We know they are no longer paying property taxes to fund local governments and schools.  And we know that there are a good number of people who have or will soon default on their mortgage so that they, too, can benefit from government handouts.

But why isn’t anyone speaking up for those of us who pay our bills…those who continue to pay taxes even when our houses aren’t worth what we owe…just because it’s the right thing to do?

You’d think it politically popular to speak to the 95% of homeowners who are current making payments and not grumbling about the unfairness of it all.

Why isn’t there a candidate out there screaming, “Enough is enough!  We can’t modify enough mortgages or reduce enough principal or prevent enough foreclosures or legislate anything to get out of this mess! We need to give some tough love and let the contracts speak for themselves!”

I’m just asking…