Credit card companies block sensible reform

Michael K. Casler, Las Vegas

Wednesday, July 11, 2012 | 2:01 a.m.

Every day for the past 11 years, I have watched people who have gross wages of between $20,000 and $35,000 a year file Chapter 7 bankruptcy, and they have an average of four credit cards with an average of $3,000 on each card. The credit card companies do not collect what they are owed after a bankruptcy filing and they lose millions of dollars every year. Do you ever wonder how the credit card companies can afford that? It is because of the high interest rates, fees and other charges the rest of us must pay.

Credit cards are used by a lot of Americans to live life at a financial level that is above what they could afford without credit. The credit card industry loves this system. They make billions of dollars. The people living above their means love it because they can live above their means. Maybe it is time that we change laws, not so people can’t file bankruptcy, but so credit card companies cannot offer credit in amounts that people with small incomes will never be able to pay back.

Oops, I forgot about those powerful credit card companies that lobby Congress against any common sense moves like that. Forget I mentioned it!

When you go to the polls, remember that the reason we can’t get this common sense reform is because the people in Congress do what lobbyists want, not what is good for the nation.