January 30, 2020
I consider myself an amateur investor, meaning that I do not professionally invest for my career or for a company. My investments are personal and I have done over 10 years of research with my spouse to plan our retirement and investments according to our family plan and the risk with which we are comfortable. We manage our own accounts and rely on no professional assistance outside of our own research from professionally published materials and sources we trust. I would probably be considered middle- to high-income by most objective standards with an 800+ credit score. I am not a wealthy investor. I feel like these proposed changes are meant to benefit the wealthy and prevent amateur investors like myself (who have sought the personal education to be a successful investor) from succeeding by shutting us out. This is one of those policies that pretends to "help out" the "amateurs" and "know-nothings" because they don't know what they're doing. We live in an free market economy that is based on capitalism and consumerism. This type of policy reeks of a strong-arm oligarchy attempting to take more control out of the lives of main-street Americans. This is the type of policy that makes people hate Wall Street. This is the type of policy that further widens the economic and class gaps in our society. I strongly oppose this policy change and feel I should have the right to be an investment consumer without policies that prevent me from making the decisions that are best for me and my family. Reconsider these actions and let the American people have access to all of the advantages to fulfill their American Dream. If you want to help people manage their risk, then develop risk management plans to educate and inform consumers and develop a safety net before folks get in too deep. Don't prevent people from accessing the tools that could lead to their eventual success.