More Regulation & Control

The Federal Government is attempting to gain more control of the financial market with the recently-passed Senate legislation regarding Wall Street.

According to President Obama, "Our goal is not to punish the banks, but to protect the larger economy and the American people from the kind of upheavals we've seen."

This may be a moderately true statement.

However, government regulation and intervention does a couple of things to the free market. First, it does limit free market practices and, potentially, expansion. Next, it increases the size and scope of government.

There is a definite need to derail criminal activities in the private sector. The same is true for the public sector. And who watches over these people?

In just the past several months Main Street USA has seen the Social Security Administration throw a lavish, by any standard, management getaway, only to be topped by the Federal Aviation Administration's 5 million dollar bash. Taxpayers have also heard about Department of Veteran's Affairs employees obtaining, if not illegal, unethical loans and other monetary benefits for themselves and family members as well seen evidence that state pension funds face a trillion dollar deficit. More recently, it was exposed to the public that many high-paid Securities and Exchange Commission executives spent their 8-hour day doing anything other than their assigned tasks.

In these days of relatively low-cost video conferencing (especially when compared to what the SSA and FAA spent), coupled with the economic reality of the times, how can the White House, Capitol Hill, state governments, etc., allow such unethical and immoral behavior in their own sphere?

Thus, the question to ask is, as government continues to grow at an unprecedented rate, who will be the watch-dog over the supposed overseers, as well as our own elected officals?

True, the election process does allow citizens to boot those they feel have violated the public trust (though having to wait two to four years may not be appropriate justice), but what disciplinary action do non-elected officials face?

Before throwing stones at the private sector, the public sector needs to ensure that each and every nook and cranny in their own house is in order. America is not a "do as I say not as I do" mentality.

Over For Now.

Main Street One