Monday, December 22, 2008

“I’m from the government and I’m here to help you”

So now that the Federal Reserve Bank cut its interest rate to virtually zero what does it mean to the rest of us? Nada! Zip! Nothing!

Oh it does mean something; fat cats bankers already awash in “bailout money” will get even richer because with free money from the Fed they can profit from even low interest loans they make, and they will make very few of those to you and me types; it’s the big borrowers that will benefit along with the fat cat bankers. With all the money at banks disposal just try to get a zero-plus loan like the banks get from the Fed – you wont even get a loan unless you don’t need one.

Have you checked your mail lately; if so you probably got an offer for a new credit card. Some of the credit card offers proclaim little or no interest on unpaid balances or transfers from other credit card debt. Are these cards offered out of the goodness of credit card companies hearts; of course not. Read the fine print and it says “interest rates may change.” You bet your ass interest rate will change, and not just a little. So sucker in the poor schnook who has already exhausted his credit limit on the rest of the cards he owns and give him a still another chance to mess up his financial life.

I have tried to find out how come when usury is still a crime, of sorts, credit card companies can charge 18%, 20%, or even 24% on unpaid balances; and they can do that if you don’t pay the charge off in 18 days. American Express with its payment office generally located across the country from wherever you are (and an inefficient postal service) is almost always guaranteed to get your payment “late’ so your next bill will have a hefty interest rate charge in your total amount due.

I have even contacted my congressman and senators to ask about this but no one is interested in giving me an answer or doing something about this “crime”, mainly because it isn’t a crime. While others may not charge such high interests, credit card companies are above the law or else have their own law, just like lawmakers do. (Do you know anyone else with the power to give themselves a raise?)

At a time when those in government give lip service to “helping out the common man from this financial crisis”, why is it that nothing is really done to help out the common working stiff who finds himself in a situation caused by the very people who we stupidly look to for solving all problems – “I’m from the government and I’m here to help you.”

How long ago were we told that unless billions and billions of dollars were voted on immediately and given to one person to distribute, the world as we know it will come tumbling down. Well the money was given, the king of money distribution changed the give-away rules, the country did not do a humpty dumpy and friends of the mighty distributor made more and more money; they even used government largess to grow bigger by buying out others.

Then we were told these billions and billions of dollars are not enough; government money givers needed more money to save us. Well that’s no problem, the Federal Reserve Bank can by more ink and paper and give it to the treasury to print more money, billions or trillions more – the opportunities are endless because the dolts in congress who approve these things have no sense or are in cahoots with the fat cat bankers to whom they look for campaign cash and have long ago discarded the oath sworn to upon election to high office “to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United Sates of America.” Now their job is to meekly follow and not question the lobbyists, special interests, and most of all, the really big money people of the country and the world. Who owns the Fed, not Americans for the most part, foreign puppet string handlers do. Henry Ford said “It’s a good thing the average folks don’t know anything about the financial system in this country or we would have a revolution next Monday.”

So when you get your new credit card with the unbelievably low interest rate, think again, there’s no such thing as a free lunch – and while you eat Chef Boyardee others are dining on caviar you paid for.

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