GREED AND THE DESTRUCTION OF OUR ECONOMY

It amazes me to hear all the “oops, we did not see it coming” out of Washington. Where were they when this devastation first showed its ugly face? Right there promoting it by aligning themselves with the lobbyist who helped bring this on…Lobbyist who fought against the regulations of Wall Street, the Banking Industry, Credit Card Companies, CEO Golden Parachute packages and pay, oil increases, utility increases and on top of all that, congress voting in their own pay increases each year. These are just a number of the problems that have brought us down economically and financially. What was our part in all this---lack of concern!

Our president and representatives are on a pay for performance. Why should these government servants be rewarded (with your vote) for doing a lousy job? I keep track of their votes through a website and make notes to myself. When it is time to vote, I carry those names into the voting booth. There, I make sure my vote does not re-elect a person who is performing badly ex., the previous administration. One needs to study and research, information on the candidates for every election--- local and federal.

Let’s talk credit card companies---the crime running rampant gang---who are tightly aligned with the majority of our representatives. Finally, after millions of complaints, the Fed’s have issued a Credit Card Reform bill. Naturally, it skirted around the main problem---no lowering of, or caps placed on interest rates. There are a few needed regulations imposed but, in this writer’s opinion, it did not go far enough. I don’t know about you but I am working hard at paying off the credit card I have and will use it as an emergency backup only.

I spoke with a friend the other day and she informed me that American Express does impose a charge limit on people who have always paid on time each month. She called and asks them why a preset spending limit is placed on some accounts. "If this is true," she said, "then you are providing “false advertisement” through your commercials and ads. Their reply, “it’s written in the contract you signed with us.” Well, that’s all fine and good however, you do not receive that contract until after your application is approved and then you receive your card and contract days later. She filed several complaints through the appropriate channels and never received a response. I’m sure it is in that contract somewhere, hidden in all that tiny print…She has yet to find it!

OK, onto the wealthy who invest in oil to the point it drives up our prices at the pump. While they are raking in the big bucks, we are paying big bucks at the pumps. Next in line, the gas retailers, if they are unregulated by the state, then no limits are set when they add their own mark up at the pump. The sky's the limit here so it's not only OPEC gouging us.

Next, we have the food suppliers, middleman, and distributors who each add outrageous markups to the grocery items. That is why we now pay $3.00+ for a loaf of bread and the same for milk; it goes on and on…Who is at the top of this insatiable food chain of greed? The corporate CEO and his board members; it all begins when they sign that high dollar contract. How did we help this inevitable fall of our economy? When they outsourced jobs, and started raising prices, we continued to buy their products and services…Because of that poor decision, and a government looking out for their own self-interest, and our have-to-have philosophy.

There is something perverse about more than enough. When we have more, it is never enough. It is always somewhere out there, just out of reach. The more we acquire, the more elusive enough becomes. –Unknown