Pre-Boomer Musings

Can you imagine, Congress did it again.  It voted on a 2,000 page bill, which few if any have read, in the middle of the night that could have untold effects on the way business is done throughout the nation and the safety of our savings.  Do you have any idea what’s in this legislation?  Is it good or bad for you?  Who do you trust to tell you about it?

To believe that big government and big business are diametrically opposed to each other is incorrect.  One can hardly function without the other.  Aside from defense contracts and other projects that bring in private sector resources, there are myriad opportunities for the big and powerful to work with each other.  When the government got involved in the automotive business, it stripped bond holders of their financial position in favor of the unions.  Before the health care vote, we saw insurance and pharmaceutical companies get behind the program because its passage meant 32 million more people to be covered and to whom they could sell drugs.  For these firms, it made good business sense.

Who pushed the bankers and Wall Street to find ways to package and sell loans to risky, unqualified applicants so those wanting a home could get one?  And which government entities stood behind these loans?   It was Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  Strangely they are exempt from regulation under the reform bill.  And who were the drivers of this poorly conceived concept?  It is the same committee heads in the House and Senate that proudly announced they had a financial reform bill that is more sweeping than any since the Great Depression.

So who is going to benefit from this fast shuffle in Washington?  While the financial biggies on Wall Street are purportedly going to have more regulations imposed on them, it will really be Main Street and the individual taxpayers who will feel the impact of this legislation.  The giant firms have their attorneys and accountants hard at work finding  loopholes; but in the final analysis, the government will ultimately determine who is too- big-to-fail without regard to the small firms who need help.  And, where regulations affect their bottom lines, we can expect to be charged higher fees and interest rates to compensate for any inconvenience they may experience.

When will Washington get on the same page as the rest of the country?  Rather than  pass more legislation, couldn’t the government just enforce the laws that are already in place?  And, if there is a need to make some changes, amendments to the existing regulations could easily be adopted and worked into the system.  Instead our elected representative would rather “throw the baby out with the bathwater.”

The details of the financial reform bill and the problems with implementing it will surface over time, as is happening with health care.  You will have to decide if this is good or bad for the country and your individual wellbeing.  In the interim, it’s up to you to look at  specific representatives and decide if they are working for you.  New Seniors have the votes; and, therefore, the power to elect the people who will listen to us and act in our best interests.  It’s time for us to be heard.       

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