Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Stock Market Update: Wednesday, October 7, 2009

After yesterday's update, a friend sent me a link to a Newsweek article that was written by a guy named Steve Tuttle and is titled, "Welcome To Overdraftville. Population: You. Do we really need Wells Fargo to be our mommy?" I may not agree with everything he says, but he certainly makes some good points, including:

* Lawmakers want to help people by lowering these fees when what they should be doing is raising them much, much higher. Why not charge at least $100 if you overdraft at the ATM?

* The politicians think they're doing the right thing. They argue that the bank fees disproportionately hurt poor people. Wrong. They disproportionately hurt people who spend money they don't have.

* Really, do you need to be told by the bank that you're about to overdraw your account? Are we so pathetic that we need Wells Fargo to be our mommy? You're the one who spent money you didn’t have. You're lucky they cover it and only charge you a fee instead of letting you go to jail for kiting checks. In the old days they used to have a thing called debtor's prison, and people did not like to go there.

* It really comes down to a simple truth that we seem to have forgotten as a nation: if you spend money that is not yours, guess whose fault that is? And guess who should suffer the consequences of your profligacy? Your bank? The store? No. Welcome to Overdraftville. Population: You.

* Maybe they should put one of those warning labels on your ATM card: "For best results, have money before using."

None of this had any impact on the market, of course, which, as usual, did whatever it wanted to do . . .
Stock Price

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