The U.S. Economic Crisis

I am very disgusted at the state of the current U.S. economy, and particularly the economy in my home state of Michigan, which has been hurting for the past two or three years (the rest of the country is only recently starting to feel the pain we in Michigan have been feeling for some time now). I am disgusted because our leaders have allowed greed on the corporate level to take advantage of the average working American. The mortgage lenders, bankers, and business leaders of this country care only about one thing----making big bucks----and they don't care who they hurt in the process.

Banks charge fees for every little thing nowadays. They forget that they would not be in business if it weren't for their customers who deposit their hard-earned money into these institutions. I can't afford to keep my money in a bank; I don't make enough money to be able to keep the required minimum balance in an account. I live paycheck to paycheck, like the majority of Americans nowadays. Why in the world should a bank have the right to require customers to maintain a minimum balance of several hundred dollars in order to have an account? I can see a five- or ten-dollar deposit requirement to open and maintain an account, as my credit union charges, but to require someone to keep a minimum balance of several hundred dollars just in order to have an account is wrong. Banks should not be able to hold our money hostage like that; it's greediness, pure and simple. It seems they don't care about the average Joe anymore, just the rich.

Credit card companies and mortgage lenders are largely to blame for the mess this country is in financially. Credit has been too freely given out to people who really could not afford it in the first place. I get credit card offers in the mail several times a week, as do my husband and son.......they all go in the trash. I have one credit card, and I have trouble keeping that one paid off; and I don't even rack up a huge balance, compared to most people. It's too easy to dig oneself into a financial hole by using credit. I prefer to avoid it as much as possible. Unfortunately society seems to be set up to force people to use credit and keep them in debt.

The interest rates that can legally be charged by credit card companies are outrageous and nothing short of robbery. There is no way a bank or other savings institution would ever pay a customer 15%, 20%, or more in interest on their money on deposit, yet credit card companies can charge customers that much and more on their card balance. This is wrong and should not be allowed.

As far as I am concerned, those who took advantage of borrowers by extending credit to those who really could not afford it, especially to those who were victimized by their adjustable-rate mortgages, should have to pay into the resulting financial fiasco with their ill-gotten profits. The government (in other words, we taxpayers) should not have to bear that burden! The corporate CEOs who live high on the hog while the common worker struggles to make ends meet should be digging into their fat pockets and bailing these greedy companies out, not those of us who are living paycheck to paycheck. And those CEOs should also be sharing legitimate company profits with the workers on the floor who make the companies successful, not hoarding bonuses for themselves.

Our government leaders, who also live the high life, should start living like the rest of us. They should not be getting the perks, the high salaries and pensions they get, just because they have a position in government leadership. They aren't really there to serve the people anymore, they are lining their own pockets at our expense. They are so out of touch with how the average person in this country lives nowadays; they would be appalled if they had to live on an average working person's wages.

This is not a Democrats only/Republicans only issue, either; both parties are to blame in this mess. On the Federal level we have a Republican President; here in Michigan we have a Democrat governor. Neither party at either level has taken real steps to stop corporate or government greed. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer (and the middle class is becoming part of the poor). Jobs keep getting sent overseas, and the cost of living keeps going up, but wages stagnate or are lowered, and benefits such as health insurance get cut or become more expensive. Plus the national debt keeps rising (the bailout, if it goes though, is going to cost us dearly!). How in the world can the government keep dishing out money it doesn't have? Thing cannot continue as they are; this country is collapsing on many levels. It has to be turned around ASAP.

The time is long overdue for the government to cut programs and pork from the budget; it's also time for the government and corporate bigwigs to stop living high on the hog and start making some sacrifices of their own, and live closer to the level of the rest of us in this country. The rich should dig into their pockets instead of expecting the "little people" to bear the financial burden of supporting this country. Stop overtaxing and overcharging the middle- and lower-class people and wasting the money on unnecessary government programs; let us keep more of our hard-earned money so we can take care of our families ourselves. We should not have to be dependent on the government to take care of us!

Society needs to change its attitudes concerning money and material possessions as well; we are also to blame for the financial mess we are in, because we have become so obsessed with gaining money and possessions, getting what we want right now instead of waiting until we can really afford it, and "keeping up with the Joneses." We are too quick to live on credit and take on debt; when we do so, we become slaves to the lenders, and that is not a good way to live. Materialism and consumerism need to give way to using only what we absolutely need to use, buying only what we absolutely need in order to live, simplifying our lifestyles and slowing down to enjoy life instead of always pushing ourselves to make more, get more, buy more, etc. We should use our extra resources, if any, to help those in need instead of hoarding more for ourselves. We should live within our means instead of going into debt for things, most of which we really do not need. Abundance of possessions only leads to clutter and more things to take care of (and family arguments after one dies!).

We all need to work together in order to change things for the better---the government, the financial institutions, the business leaders, and the common people all have a part to play in turning things around, and all need to be willing to change attitudes and the way things are done to benefit all, not just a privileged few. And I think those of us who are sick and tired of the status quo need to stand up and say so, and band together and bring about the change that is needed, especially in November. If you aren't registered to vote, get registered. Instead of just complaining about things, vote your conscience, make your voice heard on the issues, and if you feel so led, run for office at some level.

We need a change in direction, now.