May 23, 2011
I'm writing because my family has been affected by the economic crisis of 2008 and would like to see significant reforms made to Wall Street. I believe the greed of Wall Street has hurt the average American, like me, and to allow lucrative payouts and bonuses to continue without real consequences for reckless behavior is unconscionable.
My husband had been teaching for six years in the public school system when he lost his job last year because of budget cuts, caused by the economic crisis. I am a stay at home mom and we have two small children, so we were very dependent on his income. After spending his summer vacation job-hunting, he was fortunately able to land another teaching job. However, because our city is still under a mounting debt, our leaders are still looking at cutting public jobs such as my husband's. So, we still worry about what may happen in the future.
I can name many other people who have been adversely affected by the economy. My father's nonproft business has been hit because donors became more tight-fisted with their money; my friend's husband lost his job because the hotel where he worked couldn't fill its rooms; and many teachers at my husband's former school were unable to find work.
Can you imagine how frustrating it is for us to hear that Wall Street is still handing out huge bonuses, knowing all along that it was responsible for the current recession? Is it right that Wall Street managers and brokers have become more valuable than our country's teachers? Who is really investing in our future, in our long-term growth?
PLEASE regulate Wall Street so that this economic recession does not happen again. One way would be to delay bonuses so that Wall Street would be forced to take the long view instead of focusing on making a quick buck without worrying about the consequences. THE TIME IS NOW when the pain is real to take decisive action to prevent Wall Street greed from ruining out country again. The American people will thank you for it.
Sincerely yours,
Mary Grovesteen