"Speak Out" is an expression of opinion from the Editorial Board of WBTV, and is presented by General Manager, Nick Simonette.
As if the past four years haven't been hard enough on the economy, now some politicians seem intent on turning their election campaigns into an all-out war on the banking industry.
That hits home for Charlotte.
A host of high-profile politicians are whipping frustrated Americans into an absolute frenzy over Bank of America's new five dollar debit card fee.
On the floor of the Senate, Illinois Senator Dick Durbin recently urged customers to stage a run on the bank.
We think that's incredibly irresponsible.
Did he not give a thought as to how an organized strike on the bank could seriously damage our economy, and harm employees and investors?
Ironically, it was the Durbin amendment that pushed the banks to levy new fees.
It limits what they can charge businesses for debit and credit card transactions.
The banks are looking for ways to recover those loses, and they're passing new fees on to you and me.
We say if customers are unhappy with their bank, they should leave it – they have the freedom to do so.
It's an easy-enough process, and, thankfully, in this country there are plenty of options out there, including credit unions.
But let the free market tell a business how much it should charge for its services, not lawmakers.
Yes, bankers caused a lot of problems that led to the economic collapse of 2008.
But if public figures keep trying to control private businesses, they'll be creating new issues that are just as dangerous.
Tell us what YOU think. SpeakOut@wbtv.com.
