There were a lot of shady financial products that helped tank our economy: exploding mortgages, tricky credit cards and shaky mutual funds.
We just took a first step to curb the credit card banks, but most of the shady products and practices that brought down Wall Street and emptied our retirement accounts are still perfectly legal.
Our laws make sure cars are safe, and our medications do what they’re supposed to. But when it comes to protecting your hard-earned money, it’s the Wild, Wild West, and there’s no sheriff in town looking out for you.
Tell Congress: It’s time for a new sheriff to get tough on toxic financial products.
Our financial system needs more than a bailout -- it needs an overhaul. A patchwork of federal agencies oversee financial products, yet none of them have consumer protection at the top of their agenda. And many products aren’t supervised by anyone.
We need a new Financial Product Safety Commission whose sole job, as the new sheriff, would be to stand up for us as we borrow to buy homes and cars, and invest our money for retirement or our kid's college education. If you've experienced the pressure and confusion of ahome mortgage closing, or you didn't understand the legalese in your credit card contract, then you know for yourself how hard it is to "go it alone" in this marketplace.
Of course, the financial industry doesn’t like this idea. It prefers to close the deal with you unchecked, paving the way for more quick profit, even if the entire economy suffers.
It’s time for a Financial Product Safety Commission who looks out for us!
There’s real momentum for this idea -- some in Congress have already introduced bills. Let’s make sure our leaders know that we need a new sheriff in the marketplace so we can finally enjoy some peace-of-mind about the future of our money.
And after you take action, please forward this to friends and family so they can join with us in supporting this important new reform.
Sincerely,
Pam Banks
DefendYourDollars.org
A project of Consumers Union
1101 17th Street NW, Suite 500
Washington, DC 20036
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