UNCLE SAM AND THE LITTLE GUY

IF the validity of a conviction can be measured by its longevity and the tenacity with which it is held, then the Federal Government is surely the last and best hope for protecting the man of small income from the ravages of an economic system which, to quote a phrase of the Indiana Public Interest Research Group, “places corporate greed above public need.” You bought Hai Karate but have yet to defend yourself against the advertised onslaught of feminine lust? Contact the FTC (or is it the FDA?). Did Crushem Van Lines strap your original Philadelphia highboy to the outside rear of the van and proceed to back into a brick wall? The Interstate Commerce Commission is the place. Perhaps during the recent energy “crisis” you could locate only one open service station on an otherwise deserted road and discovered that they were charging 99 cents a gallon for gasoline. Obviously, you would rather pay 50 cents a gallon for gasoline which isn’t available than 99 cents for gasoline which is. Contact the Division of Price Gouging and Generally Antisocial Behavior of the Internal Revenue Service.

In the light of this conviction, it may be instructive to examine the behavior of the Federal Government in one area which has a significant and continuing effect on the financial well-being of virtually every American family. I refer to the regulation of interest rates payable by financial intermediaries, and primarily commercial banks and Savings and Loan Associations, to their depositors. It is a sad tale, sometimes an intricate one, but it is well worth understanding. I will try to convince you that in an effort to enforce restrictions on competition within and between the commercial bank and S&L industries the Federal Government has a) continuously discriminated against the little guy; b) increased the cost and reduced the availability of home mortgage money, particularly during periods of high inflation; and c) increased the cost to all taxpayers of servicing the national debt.

MK

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Michael A. Klein

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IF the validity of a conviction can be measured by its longevity and the tenacity with which it is held, then the Federal Government is surely the last and best hope for protecting the man of small income from the ravages of an economic system which, to quote a phrase of the Indiana Public Interest Research Group, “places corporate greed above public need.” You bought Hai Karate but have yet to defend yourself against the advertised onslaught of feminine lust? Contact the FTC (or is it the FDA?). Did Crushem Van Lines strap your original Philadelphia highboy to the outside rear of the van and proceed to back into a brick wall? The Interstate Commerce Commission is the place. Perhaps during the recent energy “crisis” you could locate only one open service station on an otherwise deserted road and discovered that they were charging 99 cents a gallon for gasoline. Obviously, you would rather pay 50 cents a gallon for gasoline which isn’t available than 99 cents for gasoline which is. Contact the Division of Price Gouging and Generally Antisocial Behavior of the Internal Revenue Service.

In the light of this conviction, it may be instructive to examine the behavior of the Federal Government in one area which has a significant and continuing effect on the financial well-being of virtually every American family. I refer to the regulation of interest rates payable by financial intermediaries, and primarily commercial banks and Savings and Loan Associations, to their depositors. It is a sad tale, sometimes an intricate one, but it is well worth understanding. I will try to convince you that in an effort to enforce restrictions on competition within and between the commercial bank and S&L industries the Federal Government has a) continuously discriminated against the little guy; b) increased the cost and reduced the availability of home mortgage money, particularly during periods of high inflation; and c) increased the cost to all taxpayers of servicing the national debt.