$(document).ready( function () { talk_rendercallback({"enabled":"0","islive":"0","eid":5712,"total":"425","discussion":[{"nm":"Marsha S","rs":"0","ms":"I think this documentary shed a lot of light on practices many consumers are not aware of (or at least weren\'t when they signed up for a credit card). In doing so, this documentary gives a &quot;card&quot; to the consumers, so now the banks aren\'t holding all the cards. I believe a lot of these problems could be avoided if everyone in America (including our government) learned the dangers of living on credit. The free market system only works when there are no restrictions on information. Small print and highly technical jargon are ways of restricting information. On the surface it is made to seem like we can get something for nothing. They are playing into the entitlement mentality which is running rampant throughout our society. \n\nThe hard reality is: there\'s no such thing as free money. It always has to come from somewhere. I believe a way to effectively combat this American Plague is through educating and helping people learn how to manage money before they get into trouble. The answer is not living on credit. A better answer is perhaps spending less than you earn (a novel idea, I know). It\'s a lesson many of us are learning the hard way. \n\nWe can regulate all we want - and I\'m not saying that it isn\'t needed - but I think we will find it will not be as effective as hoped. The banks and credit cards will find loop holes, just like they have with every other bill. Those companies won\'t stop lobbying and paying nice campaign donations to key politicians. The way to stop them is to cut off their revenue stream. Where do they get their revenue? They get it from people who do not understand what those companies are up to, and from people who do not understand the ramifications of living on credit. They get it from people who feel trapped and do not know how they can live without their credit card and line of credit. ","pt":"Apr 13, 2010 20:14"},{"nm":"Marsha","rs":"0","ms":"The C.A.R.D act was definitely a high stakes poker game between the banking lobbyists & Congress. The American Consumers were the bargaining \'chips\' on the table. We got hosed by both! ","pt":"Mar 19, 2010 13:59"},{"nm":"Ryan","rs":"0","ms":"@Donnie I wouldn\'t really go calling this biased. This entire documentary is only meant to shed light on this practice and I think it does give banks a pretty good shot at trying to explain why they do add these hidden fees but its not exactly something you can justify with anything more than &quot;we found ways of working around the system to make money&quot;. Banks are useful and i think the problem behind all of this is pretty much lobbyists constricting our governments ability to function properly. I mean i think this one of the main reasons why the government is having such a hard time regulating banks especially in the Obama administration.","pt":"Mar 13, 2010 03:55"},{"nm":"chz","rs":"0","ms":" \n After watchng this program for the second time. I have discovered and have been convince that there are numerous, attentional, calculated attempts to make it sound as if thers\'s something wrong with my english.When I talk to different one,s in the Financial Industry, it seems as I am speaking an different language. In regard to your story concerning the Credit Card Game, I have restored my Brain, and Heart back to a original state of an Common Consumer or customer.To be very truthful with you, ( ITS A GOOD PLACE ) from the lunacy that have been dicuss before, with  whom I was speaking to others on what I beieive to be communication. After listening to that excellent program on, Credit Card Game and Mr. Scott Talbott an his sensitive,touching, caring cold fingers uponthe pulse of his VICTIMS ,SORRY-I,meant Consumers,which MR. Scott Talbott has personally took such an entrance into and interest in to personally GAGE the Consumer wants and needs base not on research,polls,surveys,or common sense. Mr. Scott Talbott own his on strenght of character have told me that, WE,YOU,ME have told him what to do when,MY acct. and Your acct. gets to the POINT   THAT an decision should be made concerning MY,and YOUR ACCTS. that would push ME or YOU into an Default or a Penalty which FEES would be attached, without notification you can pick and choose and hold my account hostage while you determined what set of purchases, decided by them and not prioritize by TIME,DATE,or any sequence only from the position of ,What Would PUSH This Acct. Over The Edge Into DEFAULT and PENALITY Never, Never Land. Your ARROGANCE to explain my position as an credit card holder,that Mr. Scott Talbott have with so much care and experience have heard my crys of desperations and therefore with nothing else but LUST, SORRY again (love) I, meant not to say. To fulfill his selfrighteous,selfdillusional stance of himself, his constituences,and his company.  I ask you with decreasing respect of a person who obvious has attended the highest degrees of secular education, &quot; but &quot; falls considerbly below the intellectual the GAR--BAGE that flow from his brain to his mouth. In the future, before you open the GATES of UTTERANCE, make sure you speak, discuss your position with someone else ( NOT ANOTHER YOU ) someone out of the circle of brilliance. LIKE, Someone with some common sense.  \n \nThank You CHZ               ","pt":"Mar  3, 2010 14:31"},{"nm":"chz","rs":"0","ms":" \n After watchng this program for the second time. I have discovered and have been convince that there are numerous, attentional, calculated attempts to make it sound as if thers\'s something wrong with my english.When I talk to different one,s in the Financial Industry, it seems as I am speaking an different language. In regard to your story concerning the Credit Card Game, I have restored my Brain, and Heart back to a original state of an Common Consumer or customer.To be very truthful with you, ( ITS A GOOD PLACE ) from the lunacy that have been dicuss before, with  whom I was speaking to others on what I beieive to be communication. After listening to that excellent program on, Credit Card Game and Mr. Scott Talbott an his sensitive,touching, caring cold fingers uponthe pulse of his VICTIMS ,SORRY-I,meant Consumers,which MR. Scott Talbott has personally took such an entrance into and interest in to personally GAGE the Consumer wants and needs base not on research,polls,surveys,or common sense. Mr. Scott Talbott own his on strenght of character have told me that, WE,YOU,ME have told him what to do when,MY acct. and Your acct. gets to the POINT   THAT an decision should be made concerning MY,and YOUR ACCTS. that would push ME or YOU into an Default or a Penalty which FEES would be attached, without notification you can pick and choose and hold my account hostage while you determined what set of purchases, decided by them and not prioritize by TIME,DATE,or any sequence only from the position of ,What Would PUSH This Acct. Over The Edge Into DEFAULT and PENALITY Never, Never Land. Your ARROGANCE to explain my position as an credit card holder,that Mr. Scott Talbott have with so much care and experience have heard my crys of desperations and therefore with nothing else but LUST, SORRY again (love) I, meant not to say. To fulfill his selfrighteous,selfdillusional stance of himself, his constituences,and his company.  I ask you with decreasing respect of a person who obvious has attended the highest degrees of secular education, &quot; but &quot; falls considerbly below the intellectual the GAR--BAGE that flow from his brain to his mouth. In the future, before you open the GATES of UTTERANCE, make sure you speak, discuss your position with someone else ( NOT ANOTHER YOU ) someone out of the circle of brilliance. LIKE, Someone with some common sense.  \n \nThank You CHZ               ","pt":"Mar  3, 2010 14:31"},{"nm":"Josh","rs":"0","ms":"It would have been interesting to see a comparison with what exists in other western democracies. Mastercard, Visa etc all operate outside of the US and presumably make profits for the banks that issue them. I\'m aware that in Australia there are laws capping interest rates and controlling most of the abuses mentioned in the program. Australia is a free market economy with a strong banking system and avoided a recession when most of the rest of the industrialized world had one. It would have been interesting to show a comparison and  show how much BS most of the arguments against strong consumre regulation in this area are.","pt":"Mar  3, 2010 07:02"},{"nm":"TROY WHITE","rs":"0","ms":"After seeing the PBS program &quot;THE CARD GAME&quot;, I am appalled at the \ndeceptive conduct of the banking industry. Your traps of &quot;FREE SERVICES&quot; is \nexactly that, a trap to lure unsuspected consumers into your web of unfair \nand dishonest practices.\n I understand the concept of  free enterprise and support this idea in \nbusiness but I also understand the concept of fair and trustworthy practies.\n Preying on the unfortunate and desperate is inexcusable.\n With the current state of the U S economy you would think that the banking \nindustry would be the first to try and help in any way possible but we the \npeople see that this is not the case.\n The working class of this nation is what makes this a great country in \nwhich to live. I am proud to be an American but I am ashamed of the course \nthat we have taken in last decade. We all must make concessions to correct \nthis issue of distrust of one another and put this country back on track.\n  What will the future hold for our children if we do not stive together to \nsolve these problems now.\n\n                                                                             \n        Sincerely Yours\n                                                                             \n        Troy White \n","pt":"Feb 28, 2010 01:10"},{"nm":"Mohamed Kamal","rs":"0","ms":"This is why Islam forbids interest... Its a boon to the society...","pt":"Feb 26, 2010 06:40"},{"nm":"Fed Up","rs":"0","ms":"It\'s time for banking in America to be non-profit or nationalized, Same with health care. We are destroying our country so a small portion of the population can make a living.","pt":"Feb 25, 2010 11:08"},{"nm":"michael","rs":"0","ms":"i find it sad when our elected tell us on video that they can\'t do anything to protect the citizenry from this predatory behavior because of the power of the lobbyist. in light of the citizens united case it becomes frightening. ","pt":"Feb 23, 2010 15:17"},{"nm":"Seth","rs":"0","ms":"Remember what the Lord says: &quot;If you lend money to any of my people that is poor, you will not be to him as an usurer, neither will you lay upon him usury.&quot; \n\nAlthough it\'s true that the citizen should be wise and not give up his own financial livelihood to anyone---no matter how much he desires to (see Genesis 17, where Esau, Jacob\'s son, forfeited his birthright for a bowl of food)---the creditor should not enslave that person under financial control. People who dissent: I agree with you, I think, on the spirit of what you\'re saying: the responsibility doesn\'t lie solely on the part of the banker. \n\nIt\'s important that we justify neither the usurer nor the person who\'s put himself at the whim of the usurer. But shouldn\'t &quot;we who are strong bare with those who are weaker than us?&quot; (Romans 15). Let nothing that I\'ve said be thought that I think that people should permit the poor or the fool to indulge himself in reckless behavior, since &quot;he who doesn\'t work shouldn\'t eat,&quot; but neither should the rich be permitted to behave cruely. So when we make our decisions, we ought to weigh carefully the advantages given to one against the other, and attempt to eliminate wrong conduct from all sides---starting from within ourselves.\n\nGod bless you all! I look forward to reading further reflections!","pt":"Feb 16, 2010 06:05"},{"nm":"Donnie","rs":"0","ms":"I\'m disappointed by the bias of this frontline segment and even more discouraged by the praise from those who commented here. \n\nRemind me why people shouldn\'t be held accountable for spending money they don\'t have? This isn\'t rocket science. It\'s called real life. Banks are good for America! They promote liquidity of cash, which creates wealth. For example, look at the incredible effectiveness of micro-loans in third-world counties. This would not have been possible without liquidity of money.","pt":"Feb  9, 2010 23:36"},{"nm":"BRIAN","rs":"0","ms":"“The liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerate the growth of private power to a point where it becomes stronger than their democratic state itself. That, in its essence, is fascism – ownership of government by an individual, by a group.” \n–Franklin Delano Roosevelt","pt":"Feb  7, 2010 13:42"},{"nm":"Jared Payne","rs":"0","ms":"  This report was very illuminating. I think that the banks must self regulate or they will die. Consumers are becoming wise to there toles and snares. We are now beginning to understand again that we can be free of dependence on credit. With the will of an individual there are always ways buy a home and a car and purchase things that you want or need. It\'s within the value of you hard earned dollar. The real problem here boild down to the cost of living being so high that one can not survive on Minimum wage or a low wage. This disperity of the class system and it\'s effect are reverberated through the bankers and finacers bottom line. The hard truth is if you need more you have to earn more, not borrow more. Easier said then done but that is the truth and most definately now.","pt":"Feb  5, 2010 16:55"},{"nm":"Bret","rs":"0","ms":"We all know pervidian was crooked with there late fees that weren\'t even late, they just posted them late that\'s why they were fined.Washington is just as bad it\'s lie on this issue then lie on that  issue.Thanks for the op. to speak my thoughts.","pt":"Feb  2, 2010 13:27"},{"nm":"Jimmy Chooo","rs":"0","ms":"I like this quote from one of the other PBS shows:\n\n&quot;When the sheriff is not in town, the Banks rob the People.&quot;","pt":"Feb  1, 2010 18:00"},{"nm":"K Kip","rs":"0","ms":"This situation is only a variation on a theme.  Whose government is it?  When the Congress puts out any bill it is compromised into impotence.  Can or could most of us cut back on credit card use?  Of course we could.  Why don\'t we?  We\'ve been convinced that we need everything and we are entitled to it now.  People who can\'t afford extra items should not buy them until they have the cash in hand to buy them.  People whose only way to pay rent/mortgage or buy groceries is to use credit cards that they can\'t pay off are in trouble and they need help in some other way.  I often wonder why the extreme greed in some people makes them blind to the fact that there are people who do not have the means to survive in our society.  Was Ebeneezer Scrooge right?  What business would this money lender be in if he were to be in today\'s workforce..a banker I think...The Declaration of Independence mentioned that All men (people?) are created equal and that they are endowed with certain inalenable rights.  Among these are life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness.  When does the pursuit of my happiness overwhelm your pursuit of the same.  We\'ve lost control of our government - about 200 years ago- and are now trusting Congress to give it back to us.  I\'m not sure that this is what they want. I\'m from Massachusetts.  Are we waiting for Scott Brown to be our savior.  Saying and doing are not the same.  We\'ll see.","pt":"Feb  1, 2010 16:49"},{"nm":"Jimmy Chooo","rs":"0","ms":"Re: Joe Mac - &quot;This entitlement mentality&quot;\n\nI was reading this and had to respond. What gives you the entitlement to the credit line and interest rate you had? Just because you were good? Well your new credit line is the new reality. This is how society works. The poor and uneducated and irresponsible were paying for a portion of your risk and thus gave you some benefits in terms of higher credit limit and lower interest rates. When those price gouges on the people you despise go away, the reality is what you have now. The rich and responsible ones were riding on the backs of the poor and irresponsible.","pt":"Feb  1, 2010 14:26"},{"nm":"Jack Rousso","rs":"0","ms":"There was no mention in the show of the sometimes shadow world of credit unions. Some ... charge the same kinds of over limit fees as regular banks while acting like they are a cooperative. In addition Federal law has expanded the scope of their membership so some have experienced significant growth in membership","pt":"Feb  1, 2010 12:49"},{"nm":"Bmac","rs":"0","ms":"A few years back I was out of the country for 2 weeks and when I returned, paid my credit card bill late.  I had never been late in almost 20 years of using credit cards.  The bank charged me a $39 late fee on a $120.00 balance.  When I asked the customer service rep why the fee was so high on such a low balance, she said, &quot;It\'s standard practice everywhere.  When you\'re late on your mortgage payment, don\'t they charge you a fee?&quot;  Yes they do, I said.  If I\'m late, they charge me $62.00.  The difference is I OWE THEM ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY-THREE THOUSAND DOLLARS!  I OWE YOU 120 BUCKS!\n\nSimple legislation regarding late and other fees should be passed by Congress.  Assuming &quot;the market&quot; will take care of this is ridiculous. Since the banks all charge the same outrageous fees, either the market isn\'t working or the banks are working together.  \n\nBut now that the Supreme Court has decided that corporations can pump as much money into elections as they want, good luck seeing any changes in banking regulations. ","pt":"Feb  1, 2010 01:08"},{"nm":"Bob Griffith","rs":"0","ms":"The excuse to not cap interest rates as taking away &quot;the free market economy&quot; just about floored me.  But I realize they have to have a reason behind their legitimized fleecing of the consumer.  Tell me did it not translate into the outrageous interest rates and terms; that same logic that created the mortgage debacle?  Through the banking greed, the use outrageous interest rates and/or terms which are in turn offerred to the consumer that can least afford it then they count on the revenue that they know is unreasonable to expect.  \nThe market traded and sold these tools that they knew could not produce income.  \nThe only reason it worked was that the consumer hurt could be relieved of the whole package as long as housing continually rose at levels that could not be sustained.  The housing market fell due to this same logic.  It almost brought down our whole economy yet they still attempt to justify no control for a &quot;free market economy.&quot;  \n\nWe all hear about interest rates that would embarrass Tony Soprano, meaning that the mob has more ethics than our banking institutions...  So tell me why should banking or any other legal monetary authority not be controlled?  Why should the consumer that can least afford it be fleeced and not protected?  Why would any intelligent, rational being expect, count on, be allowed to knowingly fleece those least able to afford that treatment?  Then market, trade and sale those expectations which they already knowingly expect not to make money on?  \nThat is not sound business...unless their goal is to sell that bad assets to another unknowing counterpart...  That can only work if they sell these bad assets disguised a legitimate money making items.  Anyway, they continue to rationalize they can make money after bad investments either fleecing those least able to afford being fleeced or another company that unknowingly buys these bad debts as legitimate money making investments.  That is just what our goverment needs to be controlling.  Make our monetary institutions earn money legitimately without unereasonable interest rates or unreasonable terms on any consumer.  Stop these institutions from fleecing their customers.  Make them competitive for customers once again without that need to be dishonest, without the need to think of new ways to nickle and dime the comsumer.  Lets try to hold business to some ethical behavior that serve their consumers.","pt":"Jan 31, 2010 03:38"},{"nm":"Erik","rs":"0","ms":"Folks, the big banks are out to screw you and me. They don\'t care about us as Americans, and they don\'t care that their practices are hurting America as a country. They only care about their own profitability. That\'s what they were taught to value in their MBA school.\n\nIt\'s time for use to vote with our feet. I was a Citibank client for over a decade, where I had a checking, savings, overdraft line-of-credit, credit card, and Roth brokerage accounts. Well I was upset that Citibank was taking government money from the taxpayers via the front door, and the back door. So I am voting with my feet and my money. If Congress is too corrupted by the bank\'s lobbying money to address the imbalance I\'ll do it myself.\n\nI opened a checking and savings account with a local credit union. I closed my Citibank credit card and moved my retirement account to another non-banking brokerage firm. Now my checking and savings accounts are at a smaller, more personal (and friendly) credit union and still have the same account protections. I have a better online research and quoting system for my brokerage account. AND CITIBANK CAN KISS MY DEPARTING PERSON GOODBYE.\n\nFor those who are trapped by pay-day lenders, and on the edge with credit cards at 30% interest. Check into opening even a Savings account ($25 to open) and then ask about a signature loan from the credit union. Even if they might only give you a small one, it could be enough to pay off the pay-day lender or transfer some of that credit card debt at 30% to a much cheaper loan with your credit union. Then never go back to that pay-day lender, and never run up that credit card again. Don\'t do it. They\'ll just trap you into being a slave again. DON\'T FEED THE BEAST.","pt":"Jan 31, 2010 02:51"},{"nm":"J.V.Hodgson","rs":"0","ms":"I think this whole conversation simply points out that a money business without reasonable simple straight forward legisaltion, can become a minefield by having agreements that even a Philladelphia Lawyer would be hard pressed to figure out.\nSo the solution is simple really:-\n1) Do you charge a membership fee, if so how much.\n2)The interest rate will be capped at the Fed funds rate plus an addition of between 2 to 3% depending on your credit rating (maximum 10 categories) specifying how and where this data was obtained.\n3) Change requests to 2 above cannot be made until 30 days after notification and agreement with the cardholder, and  such change request must be issued with the statement of account. The card holder must either accept in writing the request or may cancel the card both of which take place 30 days after the last statement date.\n4)The monthly billing periods shall be published on our ( company) web site and updated annually.\n5) All payments made shall be allocated to the oldest debt or transaction first, even if only a partial credit can be made to a particular transaction including Interest.\n6) the monthly statement shall show an aging analysis of debt by month showing the original charge or balance and the interest charged to date on those outstandings and the total debt for each month unpaid.\n7) The interest free period ( if any) on new debt must be at least 10 days to allow time from receipt of statement and payment by bank transfer or mail of cash in settlement. Ideally Ebanking should be available.\n8) A list of other charges that can be made (not interest or card membership charges) and the specific amount( preferably) and frequency of charge or formula for calculation of said charge and frequency. Interest thereon cannot exceed as agreed in 2 or 3 above.\n9) the maximum credit amount is agreed and stated and once hit including interest and member fees the card is unusable until paid in full.= bad debt control for card company\'s.\nWe should remember credit cards were originally sold as a convenience not to carry cash and were financed and profit generating by charging retailers etc a fee and mostly paid by card holders what in effect was an annual management fee, plus Interest at a published &quot;annual percentage rate&quot; APR if you did not pay within the free credit period.\nWhy is this so difficult.... Greed and Ah we need competition. the above 9 can still leave hundreds of competitive options, depends how risky or greedy you want to be.\nRegards.\nHodgson.   ","pt":"Jan 31, 2010 00:31"},{"nm":"Joe Mac","rs":"0","ms":"I have no pity for those who &quot;Chose&quot; to spend more then they were capable of paying off.  This entitlement mentality has cause their own demise, even though this mentality has been encouraged by the banks and credit card companies.  People can and need to held accountable for their own conscious spending. \n\nWhy am I the one being punished with lower credit limit & higher interest when I pay my bills on time and I don\'t keep a balance on my credit cards, when my credit is/has been spotless all of my adult life ?","pt":"Jan 30, 2010 16:07"},{"nm":"Don H","rs":"0","ms":"What the banks are doing is outrageous and unconscionable. After some tough business setbacks, throughout last year I found myself getting further and further in debt with all the little games the credit card companies were playing.  I had never been late and for many years had paid my cards off each month.  But when times got tough and I needed the banks behind me more than ever, they lowered limits to current balance levels and raised interest rates.  I finally sought out a solution called debt relief (ApexDebtRelief.com) which the banks\' lobbyists and PR people talk against, but who actually could help me get out from these banks and saved me so much money.  This company negotiated with the banks on my behalf and saved me thousands.  Always a responsible and law abiding small business owner, I feel this represented a way to get myself out from the daily pressure without filing BK, and to get a chance at a fresh start.  If you are going to keep overspending, save yourself the trouble, but if you are sincere, there are solutions for you!  ","pt":"Jan 30, 2010 15:44"},{"nm":"Experiencing Hard Times","rs":"0","ms":"I found the program enlightening.  I thought that I was the only one getting the shaft.\n\nI am over fifty years old, and for the first time in my life, I am unemployed.  As a desperate measure, I used my credit cards with the low interest rates.  Even though I used the cards for essentials, I suddenly found the interest rates suddenly change to 27 per cent.  I was not late on payments, so I was devastated by this underhanded tactic.  I estimate that once I get a job, it will take me over five years to pay off these high interest credit cards.\n\nI have been on extended unemployment benefits.  I WAS SHOCKED THAT THE STATE OF TEXAS USES CHASE BANK VISA DEBIT CARD TO PAY THE BENEFITS. Why?  When I received the card, it enclosed a letter that encourages use of the card &quot;to make purchases at merchant locations anywhere, including grocery stores, gas stations, department stores, restaurants, and thousands of other retailers!&quot; However, In very small print, you can see the bottom left corner with an asterisk; &quot;* See the enclosed Texas Workforce Commission Unemployment Insurance (UI) Debit Card Disclosure Statement and User Agreement for bank transaction fee and surcharge details.&quot;\n\nIt is very disconcerting that the Taxpayers bailed out Chase Bank, and the bank finds ways to nickle-and-dime the most vulnerable people -- the unemployed.  Also, on numerous occasions, while I was waiting in line for a bank teller to get my money from the debit card, I was approached by Chase employees and asked if I wanted to open a new checking account.  They are really hawking a promotion that if you open an account with $25 and a direct deposit for my paycheck, they will give you $100, etc.  I told them that I do not have a job, and they said it does not matter.\n\nAlso, when I went to pay my county real estate tax online, I was was charged a &quot;2.15 per cent Convenience Fee&quot; by none other than CHASE BANK.  I suppose that CHASE BANK is getting extra income for collecting my taxes when I use a credit card!!!!  I was not using a Chase credit card.  JPMORGAN CHASE collects the &quot;Convenience Fee&quot; when you use any credit card or debit card. \n\nCHASE BANK is everywhere, sucking the marrow out of anyone that is in hard times.  Now that the FEDERAL government is coming down on them, they are seeping into the STATE and COUNTY government financial affairs.\n\nHow long will it take people to figure out that they are being expoited on the local government level by banks?","pt":"Jan 30, 2010 13:13"},{"nm":"Charles Franklin","rs":"0","ms":"   \n What I found very disturbing, was the comments of the GUY who without a survey or any kind\nor estasblish research told ME that I told HIM personally that I wanted to pay certain charges on my CREDIT CARD to put ME into a position were , THEY the CREDIT CARD COMPANY\nchoose what payments to assign , BASE on what sequence would put ME in DEFAULT AFTER using \nmy Credit Card after a purchase. STUPID ME BELIEVE THAT IF I PURCHASE A BUBBLE GUM USING MY CREDIT CARD ON THURSDAY AND I PURCHASE A COOKIE ON FRIDAY THAT THE THURSDAY BUBBLE GUM WOULD\nBE CREDITED, FIRST. JUST BECAUSE THE COOKIE COST MORE THAN THE BUBBLE GUM IS NO REASON TO \nPUT ME IN A DEFAULT POSITION.","pt":"Jan 29, 2010 23:34"},{"nm":"Judy O","rs":"0","ms":"It used to be illegal to charge usurious rates.  Now Congress gives them a green light to do whatever they want.  It\'s time to put term limits on Congress so that stop misusing their power and actually do something that benefits the American people.","pt":"Jan 29, 2010 13:50"},{"nm":"Mary Fris","rs":"0","ms":"An interesting show, but spent too much time &quot;playing the violin&quot; for people who cannot manage their money, like that gal who was upset about raised rates on her Nordstrom\'s card. Did she really need a running balance on stuff from Nordstrom\'s?  When I first started working, I got a credit card. But I only used it to make small purchases I could afford to pay off at the end of the month. You don\'t need a lot of brains to figure out that its going to cost you to make minimum payments every month. Americans have an over developed sense of entitlement when it comes to credit and blame everyone but themselves. When will we take responsibility for our actions? If you can\'t afford to pay it off at the end of the month, its really quite simple; don\'t buy it or pay cash!","pt":"Jan 29, 2010 13:02"},{"nm":"Gary","rs":"0","ms":"Setting a cap on credit card interest rates is not &quot;setting the rate&quot;. Currently, the Credit Card industry has the legal right to override any states usury laws and charge any rate they want, and are exempt from loan sharking prosecution. ... A VERY large section of the debt crisis could be eliminated by re-instating the Glass-Steagall act, and setting a new regulation stating that NO Credit Card can have an interest rate of more than 2% over prime. This would eliminate the need to use equity to refinance CC debt, and would also go a long way in solving the mortgage crisis. ... If the &quot;People\'s representatives&quot;, in DC were actually servants to the will of the People than this would be done Post-haste. The FACT that it is not, illustrates who they actually serve.","pt":"Jan 29, 2010 11:18"},{"nm":"Joe Thielen","rs":"0","ms":"The smart thing to do is join a Credit Union !!!  Credit Unions are non-profit, better service and lower fees than banks (you are a member, not a customer).  They offer consumer accounts and many offer business accounts like mine (Bellco Credit Union).  I have my home mortgage with my credit union, Checking, Savings, Joint accounts, Online Bill Pay, Credit Cards and 3 Business Accounts.  I actually love my Credit Union!!! How many people can say that about their bank?  To find a Credit Union in your area go to:\n\nwww.findacreditunion.com\nwww.creditunion.coop/cu_locator/quickfind.php\nwww.ncua.gov/dataservices/findcu.aspx\n\nDuring the whole banking crisis Credit Unions were sound and stable.  I believe the reason they remained sound was that they are not driven by greed as the banks are.  Fundamental difference, which creates a fundamentally different outcome.","pt":"Jan 29, 2010 11:14"},{"nm":"Ursula B.","rs":"0","ms":"Bank can boorow money at 1% and charge Mafia rates. things will not change for a while. Lets start using cash or writing checks if possible so the money stays in your account longer and it gives the banks more work to do. I for one will put my $$ into the local Credit Union.I wonder if the Banks in other countries are as greedy.","pt":"Jan 29, 2010 01:24"},{"nm":"Carole Bahou","rs":"0","ms":"This is a wonderful piece of documentary  film making, with practical and philosophical implications for us all.  Once again Lowell Bergman  has done a superb job of teasing out the sinister and invidious nature of our economic  behavior. I can only attribute it to both his insight and his ability to control his anger,  with a pleasant though persistent  demeanor.  We should all be so skilled at  seeing beyond the marketing.   Perhaps the next chapter should explore why it is that the average person has required so much debt to  meet his/her needs.   Is this merely due to  innate American acquisitiveness, or does it suggest  a  failure of wages for most people, to keep up with the outrageous cost of housing, education and healthcare over the past 20 years.  Can one really have a democracy and a plutocracy at the same time???","pt":"Jan 28, 2010 23:14"},{"nm":"Tim","rs":"0","ms":"We became a &quot;blame&quot; society.... we never accepted our responsibility for our own poor judgment. Before blaming anyone else, have you ever heard &quot;live within your means&quot;?\nI’m not siding with the Banks or Wall Street, you can make more laws you want; those greedy Bankers will find more loopholes to screw you until you learn how to &quot;live within your means&quot;.\n","pt":"Jan 28, 2010 21:40"},{"nm":"Dee Ann Royce","rs":"0","ms":"All people should take any and all $$ out of BANKS and put itinto Customer owned Credit unions.  Many wise people have done this for generations, the depositers own the band and everything is disclosed!!!! Why isn\'t the press or shoulI say PBS not hammering on the point of this existing safe haven!! The Banks need to be out of the equation.  Then theres the FEDERAL RESERVE which needs to go but the last lPres. who even talked about it was killed. JFK ","pt":"Jan 28, 2010 20:24"},{"nm":"Gilbert","rs":"0","ms":"Everyone is acting so shocked that this goes on but how many of us are willing to give up our &quot;free&quot; checking accounts. I for one like having free checking. I manage my money well and balance my check book and by doing so have never paid any overdraft or other fees. I know I am doing this on the back of those that are not wise with their money. If you really want to make a statement then move you accounts to a bank that doesn\'t charge overdraft fees or other penalties but my guess is you will have to pay for the use of that account. I\'m not even sure bank accounts like that exist anymore. ","pt":"Jan 28, 2010 16:51"},{"nm":"Regis von Wagner","rs":"0","ms":"Voting is not enough to cleanse us of the greedy that feast upon the poor and working people.  Politicians have to be shown that we are serious by our taking to the streets in protests.  It worked for civil rights and it will work again.  With the real probability that the racist GOP will again deceive and return to power, protests are going to become our only avenue. ","pt":"Jan 28, 2010 14:27"},{"nm":"Solvent","rs":"0","ms":"I am so outraged on so many levels. We as consumer\'s can turn the tables because of our numbers. WE SHOULD ALL STOP USING OUR Credit Card\'S FOR NEXT 90 DAYS; PAY EVERYING ON TIME, EVEN IF IT IS ONLY THE MINIMUM. THIS WILL ELIMINATE THEIR EXCESSIVE FEES FOR NEXT 90 DAYS. LETS BAND TOGETHER FOR NEXT 90 DAYS. I WILL START BLOGGING: CCBUSTER. Join me on CCBUSTER, this is &quot;CREDIT CARD TEA PARTY&quot;. ","pt":"Jan 28, 2010 10:04"},{"nm":"Sharon","rs":"0","ms":"Free market pricing is great until it severely cripples the forward movement of a free society. What the credit card companys and the banks are doing may be legal, but its also immoral. Mr. President you said, &quot;The buck stops with me&quot;. I hope so. \'We the people\' simply cannot afford the interest rate thats attached to it.","pt":"Jan 28, 2010 08:51"},{"nm":"Dean Timothy","rs":"0","ms":"  I\'m still on the frontline with Frontline fighting the credit card industry in which I commented on November 25.  This show has changed the way I deal with credit cards and has saved me money.  Now it\'s my turn to take a shot at the credit card industry.  Why don\'t we all take the time and stuff those prepaid envelopes that we receive  in the mail with unwanted JUNK mail and send it back to the credit card companies for them to sort out?  Maybe this will create more jobs and take a bite out of those bonuses.  For somebody has to open those envelopes and pay for those prepaid stamps and it\'s a good way of recycling.  Let them deal with the trash that they are trying to sell us.  I am CANADIAN and I am on your side on the frontline.  It is happening here too!    ","pt":"Jan 28, 2010 02:28"},{"nm":"Michael Gaussa","rs":"0","ms":"Here\'s a new trick from the credit card companies (Discovercard) to watch out for.  They move your payment due date earlier in the month without notifying you directly about the change (I received an email that said there was a message for me at their web site.)  I make reaccuring payments online automatically for this card for a set due date.  The date was move up and my payments were late.  Since I don\'t think about this card it took me three billing cycles at $35 per occurance late fee to realize that something was wrong.  Pretty crafty move on their part.  Like the program stated:  Congree will pass laws and the credit card companies will just find other way to take our money.  God Bless America.","pt":"Jan 28, 2010 01:49"},{"nm":"Dan Silver","rs":"0","ms":"I just want to compliment Frontline on this outstanding journalism. I will certainly up my contribution to public television -- and will pay by money order!","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 23:33"},{"nm":"Kurt Benson","rs":"0","ms":"too bad in many ways the concept of usury has disappeared.  I can think of several bankers bound for hell if Dante was right.  We now live in a country where the big banks outshine the Mafia for loan-sharking and our elected officials let them.  If the Mob did what bank lobbyists do we\'ld call it payola and get RICO involved.  ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 23:14"},{"nm":"G Mah","rs":"0","ms":"I am a Canadian and I just viewed your show.  It was an excellent program.  It is unbelievable how arrogant bankers can be.  Just who do they think their customers are?  Are we not their customer that keeps them around?  I would like to have every consumer in North America close their account and see how these bankers will fair.  I do agree we need banks, but I think they need the consumers more than the consumers need them.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 23:02"},{"nm":"William N.","rs":"0","ms":"I watched &quot;The Card Game&quot; program last night and I was compelled to update my Facebook status to tell everyone this program is a &quot;must watch&quot; show.  Based on what goes on with the &quot;establishment&quot; in our nation\'s capitol, I wasn\'t surprised by what I saw.  Of course our government is driven by lobbyists and it almost always favors the corporations.  And yes, the flipside to that, is we as Americans need to learn financial literacy and then practice financial literacy.  The problem is, nothing will get done as far as changing these lobbyists from keeping their power until we as Americans turn our apathy into action and start to vote those politicians who are in the pockets of these corporations.  Vote them all out, and let\'s insist on term limits!","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 22:27"},{"nm":"M. A. Webster","rs":"0","ms":"I watched your program last night and couldn\'t believe the gull of the guy that owned the payday loan businesses. We\'ve gotten into a bind or had an unforseen expense from time to time and had to enlist the services of one of these businesses. Every time I visited this office, people were paying back huge amounts of money and turning around and reborrowing, everytime. So this guy is so full of it. Luckily, my loans were small enough to be managable. Also, every time I would pay back my loan, they would ask me if I wanted to reborrow, which I never did.  Don\'t get me wrong,I don\'t know what I would have done without them. But there are so many people caught in their trap.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 19:10"},{"nm":"WendyinCalif","rs":"0","ms":"This is not happening in Canada.  I keep saying this because I want everyone to realize that the US government had the ability to keep this from happening and also from keeping it from continuing to happen. The looting taking place started as early as 2005.  That all of the money left the middle class and ended up in the pockets of the CEOs in the financial industry isn\'t just a coincidence.  I\'d suggest moving your money into another country; that should get someone\'s attention as it appears moving it to credit unions is only making those going through foreclosure modifications pay the price.  ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 18:38"},{"nm":"Richard Pearcy","rs":"0","ms":"The poor sharecropper, the banks like it when you have to use the company store. They offer a service you cant pay dont borrow.But I do believe they are openly if I may deceptive.The local loanshark operates the same way,pay back or we gonna hurt ya.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 18:31"},{"nm":"Lee","rs":"0","ms":"Senator Shelby doesn\'t make sense to me.  The way things are right now, didn\'t we let the banks use the most uninformed and irresponsible borrowers to lead the economy into collapse, at the expense of all of us who buy and borrow within our means?  Then we responsible taxpayers pay the banks again to bail them out, and now, again in the name of a mythical capitalism in which apparently only the banks are allowed to accumulate capital, we proceed to let the banks operate in the same secretive way.  Insanity is repeating the same actions and expecting different results?  ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 17:49"},{"nm":"Carl","rs":"0","ms":"This is astounding that these comments reflect so much on need to&quot;keeping better control of your buying and spending.&quot; This is disgusting that a banking system has become the &quot;enemy of the people.&quot; Unbelieveable that we are made to become the &quot;cause&quot; of our problems. The banks of a mockery to the people. Your better off putting your money under the mattress, destroy your &quot;credit&quot; cards and deal in cash ONLY!!","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 17:23"},{"nm":"Tom Pugh","rs":"0","ms":"Here\'s a clue to all you disgruntled folks writing in:  No ONE, not a banker, not a senator or congressman, gives a tinkers damn about any of this beyond how much money they make or get contributed to their re-election campaign.  Save your breath!  ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 16:00"},{"nm":"james perrotti","rs":"0","ms":"talk about &quot;reality TV&quot; this is as real as it gets. Banks will always profit off of America\'s inability to delay gratification. People spend way beyond their means. I simply avoid credit cards due to my absolute stubborness to make some guy rich in New York at some major bank. I don\'t want to finance his cuban cigars, expensive champagne, lap dances, etc. etc. Wake up America!! this is reality TV!!! PBS you are fighting the good fight...","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 15:52"},{"nm":"Matt","rs":"0","ms":"Stop going to businesses that accept credit cards. As long as you use your credit card, you are feeding the banks and these credit card companies. Even if you stop using the credit cards, the businesses who have them have to pay a monthly usage fee and a minimum amount monthly amount fee. I am going to go to a small business that doesnt have credit card machines. Which is going to be hard to find.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 15:46"},{"nm":"Doug","rs":"0","ms":"Great show.  However, while you hammered at the high interest rates, you never once investigated the root cause of those high rates...  We have too few major players in the credit card market.  The real question: How can we bring new players into the market?  Those who are old enough will remember when the U.S. auto market was comprised of only Am Motors, Ford, Chrysler and GM?  Quality was awful; prices were high.  What keeps new players out of the credit card market would make for a very interesting Frontline edition.  ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 15:39"},{"nm":"matt","rs":"0","ms":"This is what I have concluded. The consumer is paying for having a credit card even if you dont have one. Businesses increase their goods to cover their fees for having credit card processing and the interest the credit cards charge them. But those businesses dont pay those fees. They increase the price of their goods to cover those costs. So the consumer is paying for it. Lets say 5%. Business also dont decrease the price if your paying with cash. So if the consumer has cash back credit card. At best that is 1% back. So consumer will be paying 5% - 1% = 4%. But if you pay with cash then its the full 5%. So to me its probably best to find a business that doesnt accept credit cards and is cash only. Consumer loss is 0% since they dont increase the price of their goods for credit card processing.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 15:12"},{"nm":"Barbara","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for running this piece, Frontline. Guess it\'s time to transfer my money from the bank to the credit union. Perhaps if enough of us do that, the banks and politicians will start to get the message!","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 15:09"},{"nm":"KP","rs":"0","ms":"WOW, great show. Saw it last night and it was if you were telling my story.I foresaw the rise in my house loan and tried to sell for 2 years as I watched everything forclose around me. I talked to my bank Saxon Mortgage every week at least twice and it took them 7 months to assign someone to my account to negotiate with. All along they assured that as long as I amintained the property they would not report it to the credit agencies. I know you are laughing right now. Yes, THEY LIED. They didn\'t report it for several months.But finally they did. My house payment was 100% of my monthly income. How did I ever qualify???? During that time I used my credit cards to make up the difference. I always paid ON TIME AND OVER THE AMOUNT DUE. All of my accounts were in good standing. Then, yep you guessed it. Once Saxon reported it to the credit agencies, my FICO dropped and they ALL raised my rates. One went from 7% to 29%. It had a huge balance and the interest alone was $300 per month. Needless to say I closed it along with a few more. My bank of years did exactly what you showed on your show. I had a charge come through in error that was supposed to be charged to AMEX. It depleted my balance and put me way overdrawn. Instead of them paying that one item and charging 1 overdraft fee, they returned all the other small items instead and racked up $300 in overdraft charges. Then charged $5 per day until I covered the overdraft. UGH!!!Back to the house. We have had a legitimate offer with everything in order since May 16th of 2009. Saxon has NOT been able to get it together to close on it. WE have given them all they have asked for a number of times. 3 days before the close of escrow they sold the loan to Ocwen. WE had to start over. We gave Ocwen all that they asked for including a new appraisal, BPO, etc within a 2 week period. They said they had accepted the offer and were working on closing. Then without ANY written notification to me, they forclosed and changed the locks on my property and said I had 16 days to remove my property.In the mean time I got a letter of loan modification from QCWEN, lowering my interst and payment.??????????????? I have struggled to keep my credit in tact but I give up.With my credit trashed I have reluctanly decided to file bankruptcy and start fresh.This had been going on for 2 years. I\'m done. I am certainly NOT saying I made all the best choices, but I have suffered the LAWLESSNESS of the banking a credit card industry. A lesson WELL learned at a VERY high price. I am purchasing several copies of the DVD of the show and will distribute it. Excellent show and at least now I don\'t feel alone. Thank you.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 14:21"},{"nm":"Tjom Pugh","rs":"0","ms":"Why didn\'t you point out that in the midst of all this chaos, the banking lobby re-wrote the bankruptcy laws in favor of the banks and financial institutions?  ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 13:59"},{"nm":"Jim K","rs":"0","ms":"It was interesting to note that there did not appear to be overt references or covert inferences that the consumer owned some of the responsibility for their own credit card situations.  The mantra was that the consumer was being treated unfairly and being victimized by banks and similar institutions.  Why is it fair for irresponsible consumers to overspend their credit card accounts on the bank\'s dime?\n\nThe discussion on capping credit card interest rates -- a national credit card interest rate -- near the end of the story did not appear to go all the way to a/one logical conclusion:  if Congress were to legislatively impose such a cap, how would lending institutions respond?  Would they continue to provide their \'best\' customers w/lending services as usual while eliminating such services (complete removal) from their previous \'non-creditworthy\' customers who pose the highest risks to these institutions being repaid?\n","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 13:45"},{"nm":"cary","rs":"0","ms":"As I watched the progam last night I kept think of the Ursula character in the movie little mermaid.  Her contracts and the banks credit card contracts are the same.  Sign it at your own peril.  The gig is up, people who have been living beyond their means with credit cards cannot do so anymore, you will be charged 30% interest to do so.  At 30% interest it should be enough of a disincentive to avoid credit cards.  Towards the end of the program they had a gentleman talking about being happy that credit is now hard to get, he is right, living beyond our means is stupid.  The banks are preying upon our stupidity, lets not be stupid and we won\'t need congress to bail us out.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 13:35"},{"nm":"Rosa","rs":"0","ms":"First of all, I would like to say that I don’t know why Providian sold my account to Chase Bank back on June or July.  As of then I have had only but problems with CHASE.   My balance was $765.00 and I gave a payment in October 7, 2009, for $400.00.  On November 5, 2009, I sent $50.00 and on December 3, 2009, I sent in another $50.00.  On December 4, 2009, I used by Chase Credit Card at Best Buy, which was a big mistake.  Well, on my January statement, I was charged late fees ($39.00) because I did not send in a payment in December.  My December 3rd payment was added to my November payment because it fell on the same cycle.  I have spoken to so many people at Chase about of my late fees and  all them  have told me the same thing.  But these people have offered me reward points and other things in lieu of my late fees which I don’t want.  I have asked to speak to someone in Cooperate and none of the persons that I have spoken too, will NOT give me the number to Cooperate.  I am writing to you because this is a rip off.  Can anybody do something about this?  ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 13:25"},{"nm":"Lester Shepherd","rs":"0","ms":"Chris Dodd is a most disingenuous person when he states , like all the other individuals in Congress, money does not influence decisions.  \n\nRichard Shelby is a bigger disgrace when he said he was on the side of the consumer.  How could this be when little meaningful legislation made it even through the committee.  I am positive he was one of the main obstructionists. \n\nThe ABA Attorney appeared to have a mean-spirited manner when defending the banks.\n\nMr Lake gave his own definition of predatory lending that conveniently excluded himself.  How can 450% A.P.R. not be predatory.\n\nMr. Geitner  represents a sheep in wolf clothes when he announces he is for regulations that he opposed while at the Fed.  Is he really?\n\nMr. Mehta has apparently made his millions and now resides in a mansion without pity for the fools who borrowed money from him.\n\nMy point is this.  The program was the best expose\' I have seen in a long time but NO ONE, who stood to gain by these practices, that was presented by Frontline, had one ounce of honesty or integrity.  They all skirted the issue by defending, in one way or another, the credit care business as if it is the fault of the exploited.  They all blamed the victims so they could put Vicks-Vapo-Rub on their chests so they could feel better.  Their greed will bring this country to its knees.\n\nThis is so sad for all the world to see.\n\nThank you Frontline for at least presenting some of the misery experienced by common folk in this country.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 13:22"},{"nm":"David Webb","rs":"0","ms":"It’s almost like the story of the unpopular man who collected taxes for the state. He was cold-blooded, unfriendly, and used his power to do pretty much what he wanted to do. One day, while traveling through a small town, his car smashed into the read end of a truck hauling manure. The manure quickly buried the car, and the man.\nFor two days people stood around discussing whether to begin removing the manure to determine if the man was dead, or alive. In the end, no one could be found who wanted to remove the manure, because no one was really interested in what was beneath it. \nThat’s the story of our government and banking. There’s no one interested enough to dirty their hands. There’s no one man, or woman smart enough to know how to handle the problems they uncover if they did start digging. And, none of them care enough for what’s beneath the pile, (us), to remove it before it kills us.  \n","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 13:11"},{"nm":"Mark","rs":"0","ms":"I thought the report was excellent and regardless of whether it missed viewpoints here or there, no one can deny the financial institutions in the US parctice predatory policies. The credit card issue is exaclty the same as the Mortgage fiasco. I laugh at the lobbyist at the end who said if the the government decided to intervene and set guidelines and caps for credit cardt and debit card interest rates it would total undermine capitalism. When the financial instituations accepted trillions of dollors in bailout money from the governemnt Capitalism was OVER and these same insititutions that took goverment aid are using that money to keep their foot on the consumers throat. Throwing around the term Capitalism like people still believe it truly exists is a joke. After the recent government bailout the US might be the most socialist country on earth!!","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 12:49"},{"nm":"jefrey  aka john galt","rs":"0","ms":"I had to resign my job in 06, medical reason. I started my own business, the economy tanked in 07, I went to work in a hiring hall. I was laid off and found out 12/31/2008 while on vacation. I worked 11 weeks in 09.  $200 more dollars and my bankruptcy starts. And I will laugh all the way home.\nAnd here&quot;s why.\ng w bush allowed MBNA to rewrite the bankruptcy laws which tied all our credit cards together so that when you\'re late on one, all of them increase their interest rates. Also the payment increased from 1.5% to 3%.  That, my friends, was the beginning of the mess we are in now.  I want those arrogant people who state that people don\'t act responsibly, to explain how is it that you can blame the person who uses their credit card are the foolish ones, because one day the credit company doubled the payment???  It happened to me, payments went up, rates went up, and instead of filing bankruptcy then and saving my money, I called the credit companies to see what could be done.  They lowered my payments and rates for 1 year.  I asked what happens after the year is up and I haven\'t improved financially, they said let us know and we\'ll work with you.  I was skeptical but felt I didn\'t have a choice and I wanted to pay my debts. The year went by and my income did not increase, I called the credit companies and they said, in essence &quot;so sad too bad&quot;.  The interest went to 30% and the payments went outrageous, $650 a month for a 10k balance.  So they got nothing!\n I think everyone needs to just stop paying the credit companies.  Screw em!\nThey have been screwing us for to long.  Their \'power of pull&quot; is only in effect if we allow it to be.  Think about it, what if everyone just stopped paying on &quot;unsecured debts&quot;.  What a wonderful world it would be.\n\nRemember what John Galt stated when he was told he had to work for the benefit of others at the expense of his-self...I WONT.\nThat is my mantra, I live my life by the Ayn Rand code, (pay attention you tea bagger\'s I have actually read her work)\n The real point of Atlas Shrugged, is reality can not be denied and that &quot;value for value&quot; is the basis for all productive relationships.  \nThe credit companies change the rules so I changed the most important rule, I refused to be ruled.\n  I WONT allow you to use me at the expense of me.  If you do not appreciate my &quot;VALUE&quot; then I must not have any, therefore you cannot expect anything of value from something that has no value. Jokes on you MBNA I found the loophole.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 12:38"},{"nm":"Matt","rs":"0","ms":"Your entire report was undermined by not examining changes to Regulation E. Overdraft fees on debit cards have been eliminated (effective July 1, 2010), hurting banks who cannot stop the charge from taking place. Merchants can post the charge days after it has occurred allowing checks to be paid on the balance in the meantime with no recourse. Thank you for taking the popular culture view of banks being evil and not fully investigating the practices you decry as predatory.  While I agree there are some banks who have taken the overdraft service to levels where it becomes unclear, please do not lump all banks together in this manner.  ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 11:58"},{"nm":"Victoria Kessler ","rs":"0","ms":"Mention was made at the end of the program about the possibility of a national interest cap.  No where in the report was it pointed out that interest rate caps are the purview of the individual states.  Usury laws are left to the state legislatures.  In 1987, the Congress entertained the idea of setting limits at 14 percent.  The bill went down to a resounding defeat after the stock market fell that October.  Your report should have pointed out where the caps are set and not insinuate that the federal government makes those laws as well.\n\nThank you.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 11:44"},{"nm":"Erik L. Burro","rs":"0","ms":"The presentation of the CARD GAME was well developed and documented sufficiently to bring about broad understanding. While it points the legal and onerous burden Americans have had to cope with as the &quot;Financial Industry&quot; emerges from the traditional roles of banking, it failed to point out that these same companies are making substantial profits on the percentages being extracted from merchants and other recipients of each\ntransaction, which only add to their extraordinary profit taking. With the financial services industry backing\nall candidates in Congress, how will we ever reform?  The bigger question remains, completely revising the use of campaign contributions.  In the documentary, several times it was said, &quot;We just don\'t have the votes&quot; when\nsubstantial reform was proposed, but rejected by the &quot;representatives of the people&quot;. Until our people clean up\nthe money behind candidates, there can be now hope for a solution. America has been seduced into believing it\ncan correct for these shortcomings in our capitalistic system. Without a true groundswell of protest and action\nthe problem will not only persist, but grow worse.  Particularly, in view of the recent Supreme Court ruling\npermitting greater corporate campaign contribution activity. There is an ever increasing high cost to being an American.  Expect to see more of us wanting to live elsewhere.  I do not envy what my grandchildren will have to cope with unless citizens demand change.  As pressures mount and resources become scarcer, the cost of living in America and managing the society we have aspired to, becomes less and less tenable.  How sad!","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 10:02"},{"nm":"George Glasser","rs":"0","ms":"I\'m an American expat living in the UK. Interestingly, from an European Union perspective, the bankers\' interest rate policies, if practised in the UK or Europe, could be construed as a violation of of EU Human Rights Legislation.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 09:31"},{"nm":"Rich","rs":"0","ms":"CHECK REGISTER - CHECK REGISTER - CHECK REGISTER is not only for listing paper checks but DEBIT CARD (also known as a CHECK CARD) transactions - keep a check register and you will not overdraft your checking account..!  The consumer (to which I am one) needs to start taking responsibility for their accounts.  If you do not know how to keep a check register, ASK your financial institution they will be more than happy to explain the SIMPLE math of subtraction and addiction.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 09:28"},{"nm":"Steve","rs":"0","ms":"What I found most distrurbing wasn\'t the banks, as, let\'s face it, we know they are greedy. Bottom line is if you pay your card in full & on time and track your checking balance, you would never pay a fee in your life. I know that\'s utopia but it\'s true. What disturbed me the most was the phrase used by the politicians on the banking committee: &quot;the lobbyists made it hard to get the bill we wanted through.&quot;  Really? Here\'s a solution- do what\'s right, stop taking thier money and serve those who actually vote for you. Sounds pretty damn simple to me. I was sickened. They take thier money to wage their campaigns to help get them votes, the voters support them and vote for them, and then they do whatever the lobbyists want. We need real change. We need the strictess campaign finance reform ever passed and we need to prohibit lobbyists contributions. It\'s legalized bribery and we the public are paying for it.  ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 09:28"},{"nm":"Asher","rs":"0","ms":"Excellent Report ! \nJust to add another experience, I charged my debit card, it gone negative, while realizing this online, I went to Banks ATM deposited sufficient cash to cover that transaction with the idea that merchant will post this transaction 2-3 days later and this cash will be posted very next day. Surprisingly, bank didnt post the Cash Deposit, my account got OVERDRAFT FEE, I did my best, Branch, Online Call Centre and everything, they said go where you want, it will not be reversed. \n\nIf possible extend this report towards another facet of CREDIT REPORTING / SCORING, In general understanding, the credit reporting should only be restricted for default / delayed payments. In order to generate more revenue from common man, a negative mark is being placed on your credit score while someone try to obtain a credit report. Afterwards, the companies call customers for maintaining a better credit by paying some amounts to delete these placed marks from your credit history. The Credit Reporting should be a non profit Federal body.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 09:21"},{"nm":"Heidi","rs":"0","ms":"I think the biggest thing to understand as a consumer is that you DO NOT have a problem if you keep track of your purchases and manage your spending.  And this concept means not only spending within your current limits but making sure that you have enough at the end of your spending to put away in savings in case there is an emergency.  This is something that we need to start teaching our children before they even have to make those choices.  \n\nAnd if you do make a mistake every bank I know will credit you back some of those fees for the first time it happens.  Then you have to learn your lesson and don\'t do it again.  \n\nRemember they are running a business and if we choose to participate in their business we have to play by their rules.  Some of the rules are unfair and should be changed but for the most part we as consumers need to be educated and learn the game so that when we play we get the benefits that the banks and credit cards supply to us.  \n\nDo I want to keep all my money under a mattress?  No.  So I have to learn the rules and keep track of my account.  There is no excuse for negligence. ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 09:10"},{"nm":"Larry Sanazaro","rs":"0","ms":"This country is being pillaged by the unethical and the greedy. They have perverted the ideals of the &quot;American Dream&quot; in the name of their selfish accumulation of wealth. This wealth is not the kind most people even find necessary to live in this world. But these greedy few then use this wealth to infiltrate congress in order to either make laws that benefit them or to keep laws from being passed that limits the damage they can do. The only patriotism they feel is to the almighty dollar. To them this country is no more than a means to an end and as for the majority of people that make up this country, we are nothing more than the disposable resources they use to acquire more wealth.\n\nIt should be obvious to us by now that dealing with unscrupulous individuals is a task the honest will always be burdened with, but especially now in view of the recent Supreme Court SCOTUS decision, that corporations having been mistakenly bestowed with a legal status of an individual are capable of the kind of wealth that can dwarf even the most evil of scoundrels. Corporations are incapable of any of the virtuous traits a true individual can have. Corporation however do by their nature exhibit callous unconcern for the feelings of others, they have the incapacity to maintain enduring relationships, they have a reckless disregard for the safety of others, they often exhibit extreme deceitfulness by their repeated lying and conning others for profit, they are not capable of experiencing guilt, and as demonstrated over and over again fail to conform to social norms with respect to lawful behaviors. This country is in serious trouble.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 08:28"},{"nm":"Mark Lambert","rs":"0","ms":"Imagine a world were people and politicians understand the cost before they do the deed. How can someone buy a pizza or whatever on an account that has no money in it? How can anyone sign up for a mortgage that they can afford the payments? How can a politician vote for an entitlement that there is no way of paying for? Your position seems to be that its the governments job to protect from our own stupidity. The problem is that the slick pay day loan executive may be profiting handsomely from the ignorance of his customers, but when you make him illegal, a local loan shark will sprout up to take his place. We need to educate people on how to handle money and be responsible with it. Our government does not supply a positive role model in that need. You can paint the banks as unscrupulous and my experience is that frequently you are correct. But if people do reckless things with their money,(like charging more things on their credit card than they can\'t afford) if its not the banks, it will be someone else taking their money. We need to find ways to make people smarter with their money, the government can\'t protect us from every unscrupulous money handler. Smart consumer decisions will require banks to make balanced practices and policies. ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 08:21"},{"nm":"John M. Cuth","rs":"0","ms":"The transaction fees charged merchants was not mentioned by your show.  This 3% merchant fee covers the cost of credit cards used by credit savvy people who pay their ballance in full and on time.  The rationale  that credit card companies need to pray on the poor to cover &quot;give aways&quot; to the rest of us is bunk.\n\nThe short time allowed between the issuing statement date and payment due the other trick credit card companies use to generate late fees.  Ocasionally when I travel, I get dinged on this one.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 06:22"},{"nm":"Tayo de Boer, Toronto, ON.","rs":"0","ms":"An excellent report. I think all these people were or are all criminal as well as being knowingly deceptive and unethical in their practices the preceded the latest debacle in the mid 2000\'s. I think that all these men should face heavy  criminal and financial infringements; they should be made to live the lives of those middle and low class families whose lives they destroyed.\n                               While a separate legal body may be good initially, my fear is that it could run amuck, eventually becoming another  swaying to political will and an ever growing mass of lobbyists, whose numbers should also be kept in check just like we do with other &quot;vermin&quot; like  dandelions and rats.\n                               \n                               I say horse-hockey  to his seeing a niche in the market with &quot;constant debtors&quot; , those in marginal economical situations. KEEP IN MIND THAT IN THE 1960 OR \'70S IT WAS ILLEGAL TO CHARGE MORE THAN 12% THROUGHOUT ALL THE USA.!  It may have been these same gentlemen that found a loophole in a willing state that had nothing unique to offer. I forget the name of this state but for them if was like finding oil and damn the consequences. I presume that there is too much greed to come back prior to that interest benchmark.\n\n                              What I don\'t understand that if the government on both the federal and state level has come down hard on these legal \'loan sharks\', why can\'t they do the same with main street financial &quot;black holes&quot;. Officials Stunk, Corker, and Shelby have forgotten some of the  101 economic basics, and its\' a sure bet they do not have to concern themselves with overdrafts and the such. If it were possible to get insider info, it would not surprise me one bit that these gentlemen are getting what I would refer to as VIP accounts, and not subject to the obligations do to the majority.\n\n                               Anyone know how ING fits into the spectrum ?","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 05:55"},{"nm":"Kathy ","rs":"0","ms":"RAGE!","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 05:39"},{"nm":"Muslim","rs":"0","ms":"While the general public haggle about 5% or 10% or 20%, there is no examination about the fundamentals of the matter. Religion, however, is tossed aside in the analysis of the matter and the results of such actions are plain to see. \n From the Qur\'an:\n&quot;Those who eat Riba (usury) will not stand (on the Day of Resurrection) except like the standing of a person beaten by Shaitan (Satan) leading him to insanity. That is because they say: &quot;Trading is only like Riba (usury),&quot; whereas Allah has permitted trading and forbidden Riba (usury). So whosoever receives an admonition from his Lord and stops eating Riba (usury) shall not be punished for the past; his case is for Allah (to judge); but whoever returns [to Riba (usury)], such are the dwellers of the Fire - they will abide therein. \n(  سورة البقرة  , Al-Baqara, Chapter #2, Verse #275)&quot; Usury=Any amount of interest. \n Riba in Arabic means Increase. The Islamic definition of Riba is gaining what you are not due. For example, if I loan you $1.00 you are only obligated to return $1.00. Anything more is undue gain for me. \n&quot;278 O you who believe! Be afraid of Allah and give up what remains (due to you) from Riba (usury) (from now onward), if you are (really) believers.  \n 279 And if you do not do it, then take a notice of war from Allah and His Messenger but if you repent, you shall have your capital sums. Deal not unjustly (by asking more than your capital sums), and you shall not be dealt with unjustly (by receiving less than your capital sums). \nسورة البقرة  \nSura #2 | Madina&quot;\n We are also told in Islam who are bound to suffer as a result of a system based on interest and a system based on interest: From Sahih Muslim &quot;Jabir said that Allah\'s Messenger (may peace be upon him) cursed the accepter of interest and its payer, and one who records it, and the two witnesses, and he said: They are all equal.  (Book #010, Hadith #3881)&quot;\n \n ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 05:21"},{"nm":"Steve Drum","rs":"0","ms":"Just watched your show on banking. I agree that my bank charges my debit card transactions when funds are down. If I were to list overdraft fees I had incured in the last three years, they would total $4000.00. They no longer get to hold my money. I withdraw the amount put in through automatic deposit as son as it\'s in. That way I have my money and use cash to pay for everything.. It very much is a game to them, and &quot;they&quot; i.e. the banks are winning. ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 04:20"},{"nm":"dave","rs":"0","ms":"There is NOTHING wrong with making a profit, however there is a big diffrence between profits and plain and simple ripping people off ! The money the banks/credit card companies pay to borrow money is almost 0 and they pay 1% or 2% interest for savings accounts or  charge people 24-30% interest for credit cards, is out and out GREED !!!! (They used to arrest loan sharks). It\'s so sad that Congress can\'t grow a set of balls to take these banks on, to help the American people. The time to throw ALL these chickens out is NOW !!!!!!! Heck they already made their millions in payoffs as it is !! ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 03:01"},{"nm":"Bill","rs":"0","ms":"I just watched this program. A few years ago I saw the previous one on credit cards. The expose\' is good, but no one seemed smart enough to solve the problem. We once had a cap of something like 10% interest. Anything above that was usury and was illegal. It worked!!! Now I hear people say they are &quot;conservatives&quot; and do not believe in that kind of control. They are NOT conservatives, they are ANARCHISTS wanting their freedom to be absolute. It was that same type of freedom of low margins that caused the crash of \'29. There has to be some controls in everything: It is called responsibility. Freedom is good, but without responsibility it is anarchy. ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 02:49"},{"nm":"Timothy   Daubert","rs":"0","ms":"you cant blame the banks for the mess that both republicans and democrates in the house and senate  refuse to do anything about because the excuse it will destroy ther free market and consumers are the ones who will suffer because of it the banking lobiest hand out millions of our dollars to make sure nothing is done and congress and the senate make sure this country is held hostage not a govenment of the people but of themselfs","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 02:37"},{"nm":"Paul M","rs":"0","ms":"I am so disappointed with the Bankers. It is a sad direction for this country. They sound like they are a country to themselves.\nSeveral times the bankers said if they don\'t find creative ways to cheat people they can\'t make money. Why are they still taking the enormous bonuses after the government bailed them out after all the &quot;unfortunate risky&quot; investment behavior over the last 5 years? We used to have Usury Laws. All the other civilized country\'s on the planet have Usury Laws. Why not the US?.....Hello Congress, we could use a little help here... The bankers excuse that was expressed was that the people are too stupid to manage their own affairs so we will fine (courtesy fee)and enslave them with our escalating interest rates, oh I am sorry I mean assure our profitability in the terrible environment, (we helped create..) These practices are so predatory it reminds me of the song about the company store &quot;I owe my sole to the company store&quot;. 100 years later and the same vicious game is being played on the unfortunates that have more days between paychecks than they have money. The jobs leave this country and the bankers are all getting record bonuses. Just business as usual in the new-old USA......","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 02:34"},{"nm":"Mr sleepy","rs":"0","ms":"We should just get rid of banks and lending institutions and go to a barter or pay as you go system. Any credit should be illegal. That would solve it. Oh wait! How would our government be financed. Guess we should get rid of that to. I really want that pair of Nike shoes and a Hummer though. Can you say BAHHHHH!!!!! (we are all sheeple)\n:-D ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 02:33"},{"nm":"Margaret","rs":"0","ms":"Re: the &quot;noncontractual courtesy&quot; of mandated overdraft protection...\n\nIf it\'s not optional in the contract, isn\'t it then...contracted? I was confused on that point. ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 02:33"},{"nm":"brutalben","rs":"0","ms":"the goal of morgage banks was to get u atleast one 30day late within a year before ur payments go up so u cant refinance.holding checks,debt purcheses,ect. ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 02:24"},{"nm":"TheJigIsUp","rs":"0","ms":"Just saw the Credit Game. The banks want us to mess up and not record any transaction. I\'ve had a bank HOLD a check up to 5 days which was HIGHER than the other checks I\'ve written, I mistakenly wrote another check, thinking that HELD check had cleared, and no, it didn\'t, and got hit the bounced check fee AND overdraft fee. Hey, no more. Not only do I check daily, if not twice a day my checks that have cleared the bank, also any debit transactions, I know precisely what is in my account. For the past TWO years I have done this and no more overdrafts. People please:  Just remember this: When you get your bill, immediately send a money order for a couple $$ over the amount. The money order goes thru in 2-3 DAYS! Checks are HELD for up to 5-7 days! If possible, do your banking online and YOU tell the bank where you want your monies to go. Most often, the payment goes directly to your biller the NEXT DAY.  I know it\'s hard but do not charge!!! I actually did this for 6 months. And the stupid credit card gave me $302.00 more to charge. No way!!! I\'m going to keep paying till it is paid off. And then when it is zero, I will give them $50.00. Now the credit card owes me. If I charge, I just charge HALF what is on the card. That way I never have a finance charge and the credit card people don\'t like it. So what. Now I\'m In Charge. And for God sake, shun the sharks of the Pay-Day-Loan!!! Enough said...","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 02:16"},{"nm":"Mr sleepy","rs":"0","ms":"I WOULD RATHER TAKE A LOAN FROM A LOCAL LOAN SHARK THAN DEAL WITH BANKS!!!!!!!! \nOK there is my shout.\n\nMy daughter signed up for the army at age 17(entering at age 19). She opened a checking/debit and savings account at Wells Fargo. The set up was that if she overdrew her checking/debit account the bank would automatically pull from her saving to cover the overdraft. The fee for this &quot;service was never mentioned verbally.(yes in the 8 point type of the bank terms that only a lawyer or accountant could understand). So she over drew her checking/debit account and was charged a &quot;convenience&quot; fee of about 24.00 dollars to move money from her savings account.The real wammy was when her savings account could not cove the charge plus the fee she was again charged a 24.00 fee. So 48.00 for a pack of gum. The bank allowed this to go on till she owed 2,400 in fees alone. If that is not predatory someone please explain this to me.\n\nI understand that we as consumers have responsibility but c\'mon this is out of control.\n\nThe banks do have some responsibility in this.\n\nI was surprised that the lobbyist said this is what people want. Please tell me if you wher over told that your interst would ever be over 1,000 percent. Anyone?\n\nBanks are criminal. I will take a broken leg over that crap any day.  ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 02:13"},{"nm":"Rob","rs":"0","ms":"I presume that if turn about is fair play, &quot;we the people&quot; should have extracted our revenge on the banking industry by charging them the same fees, outrageous fees and overdraft charges for the billions of dollar in bailout money that we provide to them?\n","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 02:11"},{"nm":"Brian","rs":"0","ms":"Good update since the last time Frontline discussed this topic. As far as predatory actions involving debit cards and checking accounts. Chase bank has to be one of the worst offenders. I had the unpleasant experience of dealing with Chase (right after the switch from WAMU) and what can only be termed as &quot;sketchy&quot; business practices regarding the holding of credits/deposits for long periods of time. Kind of odd my local credit union can post a credit/deposit immediately to my checking account while Chase would take on average 2-5 days. You know a bank has some SERIOUS PROBLEMS when they hold a cash deposit for days. It\'s interesting how the definition of a loan has changed. It went from I will loan you this amount of money & in return you will pay it back with interest. Now banks seem to treat a loan as, I will loan you this amount of money with interest but please never completely pay me back. ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 02:10"},{"nm":"ken","rs":"0","ms":"The answer is simple:  www.moveyourmoney.com\n\nAlso see \<a href=&quot;http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/25/move-your-money-where-pop_n_436182.html&quot;\>http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/25/move-your-money-where-pop_n_436182.html\<\/a\>","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 01:57"},{"nm":"J. Williams","rs":"0","ms":"I am moved to say that I felt profoundly affirmed by the Frontline program called &quot;The Card Game&quot; which aired on PBS this evening. I am an older, full-time PhD student, trying my best to place my focus on my studies while suffering the indignity of being hounded by creditors and my bank - Chase Bank - pummeling me with multiple overdraft fees, for the very reasons the Frontline program elucidated in this extremely important installment. I did not ask to be a depositor at Chase; in fact, I\'d left Chase Bank feeling it was not at all a &quot;regular person&quot;-friendly institution. I went to Washington Mutual, only to wake up one morning to find WaMu had been absorbed by Chase, and I was right back where I did not want to be. Before I knew it, I was getting pummeled yet again with overdraft fees, as I had so often been by Chase in the past. I realize Chase is not the only perpetrator of this abuse of consumers, but it is definitely one of the major players in this disgraceful, repeated assault. I feel that this country\'s profit-making apparatuses have turned on its middle- and lower-class citizens with a cold-blooded zeal. Watching those two steely bank representatives interviewed justify these assaults was enraging. Their callous disinterest and strident impudence in response to the heartbreak and suffering of those whose financial lives have turned to ruin because of all of this is reprehensible. That I - and so many like me - am left to feel that writing an online comment to Frontline is the only recourse I have as a consumer -- and as a full-time student, I\'m not even in the work force -- marks a grim state of affairs in this country. As a side note, Chase has a collection agency after me that demands I tell them who I am on the phone before they\'ll tell me who they are representing. I have reminded them repeatedly (because this is a regular dance we do) that I was taught NEVER to reveal information about myself to a caller I don\'t know. These collectors, representing Chase and others, don\'t even respect consumers\' attempts to protect their own privacy and security. They are verbally assaultive, attempt to shout me down and so on, in response to my attempts to do so.  So it\'s an ugly situation we\'ve got here.  And all I can say is, Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Frontline for this very important expose on this epidemic of egregious assaults being perpetrated on consumers by these banks and credit card companies.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 01:56"},{"nm":"Thomas maslan","rs":"0","ms":"Jan 26 2010     I just watched - Credit Card Game -today, it is frightening to see what they  can get away  with under the cover of free enterprise,   What I am wondering is why the government doesn\'t regulate the interest rate banks MUST PAY to those with money in savings accounts, money market  accounts , checking accounts and CD\'s . If banks can get away with charging these high rates on credit cards: We as depositors should be allowed to \ndemand a greater rate of interest on our deposits. If banks want our money they should be willing pay to get it, compete for it, This is what they are doing with their credit cards. This would encourage people with money to shop around for the best rates . All banks are Price fixing in the industry , any place else the government would step in and take them to court \nand force them to change their polices . I doubt any Bank is paying Major Corp. Accounts a mer .05 % interest on their account, if so that account would be gone in a instant .\nIf making money is the idea the Federal Government MUST HELP FIGHT THE BANKING MONOPOLY allowing the average American to fight back ! ! At present we are stuck - there isn\'t \na safe place to put our money, where it is accessible when needed,and insured ( by the FDIC ) other than a bank . I have nothing against Banks making a profit -what is enough, before they are willing to share ! ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 01:37"},{"nm":"Kenneth H. Fleischer","rs":"0","ms":"Tonight, I watched &quot;The Card Game&quot; for the second time, and I thought, &quot;Maybe, this time, they\'d do an update or correction.&quot;  Nope!  Didn\'t happen.  Here\'s my comment:\n\nI got my first credit card in 1970, not long after I\'d been laid off from my job as an electronics technician.  I viewed it as useful, but I never changed my way of financing my life, which was to save up money until I could afford whatever it was I wished to buy.  With a credit card, however, I had the added convenience of being able to pay for a thing with the card, then, when the card bill came, pay that, thus getting free use of the bank\'s money for a few weeks.  The issuing bank got me to accept the card by offering me a 33% reduction in checking account fees if I accepted the card.  The only added cost was postage for mailing in my credit card payment.\n\nIn the decades since, I\'ve continued to use my credit cards the same way, but now paying off the balance costs me no postage, because I pay it through the Internet.  I\'ve never accepted a credit card with an annual fee, and, when a credit card issuer instituted an annual fee, I closed the account.  And the checking account that I mentioned above was the only one I ever had that charged fees.  That account was closed a very long time ago.  I don\'t pay fees for any of my various banks\' services, and I still use credit cards.\n\nIf I can do this, what\'s keeping other folks from doing it? and why blame the banks for the fools that are being parted from their money for their foolishness?  In &quot;The Card Game,&quot; there is never a mention of those of us who, although not in any way wealthy, have earned top-notch credit ratings and get all of the privileges by earning those ratings and privileges?","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 01:32"},{"nm":"Irene","rs":"0","ms":"Where can we the citizens of this country seek justice and fairness?  Of course  individuals need to practice responsibility and restraint when it comes to incurring debt, of all kinds.  And far too many haven\'t.  But I believe MOST want to. However, the come-ons puked forth my banks to encourage credit card debt is worse than a drug pusher tryng to create and hook addicts. I know this sort of money gouging has been going on in some fashion since we crawled out of caves and/or fell out of trees, but shouldn\'t we, the citizens of the supposedly most enlightened democracy on earth, reasonably expect more? I watched this program tonight and repeatedly threw objects at my TV.  MY TV!!  Why should I hurt MY TV?  I should be standing in front of Bank of America with huge lemon meringue pies, hurling them at the facade, to get some attention for this.  How much TARP money did BoA receive?  How much is BoA giving out in bonus money this year?? How many credit card customers is BoA driving into bankruptcy at the same time it is giving out that bonus money???  What is most disheartening I think is how many times during ths program members of Congress said they couldn\'t do the right thing because it never would have &quot;made it out of committee&quot;.  What???  Why do We the People put up with the dysfunctional cesspool that the Senate has become?  I am FAR from a tea-partier (but I too am really, really angry at what has happened to our government over the past 30 years).  What are average citizens to do??  I am not violent.  I abhor chaos.  Hey, maybe that\'s what these yahoos count on.  The average Joe and Jane won\'t act out because we have been trained to respect law and civility.  It\'s rather akin to the edge that terrorists have.  They respect no one and nothing.  They wear no uniforms.  They have no bases of operation.  They strike under stealth and know that civilized societies won\'t sink to their level.  It seems that Wall Street and these banks have embraced that shield.  We won\'t hurt them.  They know it.  AND...our Congress won\'t protect us from them because they are being paid not to.  So, where does that leave We the People?  Angry and frustrated and with no place to release it.  Oh, great.\n","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 00:29"},{"nm":"unnamed","rs":"0","ms":"Overdraft fees are a major part of any banks income.  How would a bank survive without that income?  Major layoffs cutting the fat.  We should make banks change the way in which we use debt cards.  Teach the public to be good money managers no more overdrafts.  Just do with out.  If banks loose this income they will charge all of us for the simple services they offer for free.  Bill pay, checking, checks, statements, savings, calls to customer service, ect..... or we can just impact the poor instead.  What would you choose??","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 00:13"},{"nm":"carol mahoney","rs":"0","ms":"I agree with the person who said to buy stock in the banks.  One person plus another person plus another and so on will do wonders.  Also opt out if you are given that option.  The real reason that their are credit cards is, because, in my point of view the government and the banks want to have a cashless society.  I saw on one of the news shows today they want to eliminate paper money.  Please do not let them do that if you agree with me.         Anonymous  January 26, 2010","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 00:12"},{"nm":"Eva Lutz","rs":"0","ms":"I watched this program twice. The same institutions the american people had to bail out are the same institutions sticking it to the consumer. I would like to know why a credit card company can charge you for paying your monthly bill with a debit card, but not if you provide them with your bank account number. IT IS A RIP OFF.","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 00:05"},{"nm":"Gene","rs":"0","ms":"early distribution of credit cards use in the late 70\'s has made my life a living hell...it started with a Citi card and has since been a nightmare ending with Capital one...instead of having a comfy retirement nest egg I am now living close to proverty...I use debit cards to pay bills, use a credit union to try to save money( a few liens and garnishment created this banking strategy) and recently was completely raped by the higher education system for a student loan (but had I in a job that has nothing to do with my education background)...for the under privilaged a hope of securing a future starts with borrowing no one tells you that eventually you can\'t pay it back... ","pt":"Jan 27, 2010 00:04"},{"nm":"Alex","rs":"0","ms":"Biased baloney. Because no one put a gun to my head, I stopped using &quot;abusive cards&quot; and banks with ridiculous interest or fee stunts. For example, I switched to US bank with an overdraft protection account that costs $5.00 for a transaction and transfers several hundred dollars at a time so that small overdrafts do not generate multiple fees. No mention in the show about competition providing such options. Maybe they are not available if you do not have a responsible credit history.  When I was laid off, I changed my spending habits and covered my debt and obligations with retirement account withdrawals. It was the government who abused me then with huge penalties in addition to normal taxes for the withdrawals, despite letters explaining my circumstances that included far more losses than I have space to describe here. I only asked that penalties be waived, but nothing doing. Someone has to pay for Wall Street bailouts. &quot;Abuse&quot; used to mean something applying force or deception like bashing someone on the head and taking their wallet. Now it means demanding that they honor a clear loan contract to which they voluntarily and peacefully agreed. We need a big government nanny state to keep the big bad banks from abusing us stupid adult children. There have been times when I voluntarily signed up for a 24% interest loan and am glad that it was available. How about investigating the new &quot;American&quot; attitudes -  &quot;nothing is my fault&quot;, &quot;my decisions are not responsible&quot;, and &quot;society owes me health, living, and a big screen HDTV&quot;? Or how about investigating whether multi-billion dollar government bailouts help keep banks with &quot;abusive&quot;, money losing policies in business?","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 23:53"},{"nm":"KR","rs":"0","ms":"The credit card companies made poor lending practices over many years. Now that those decisions are catching up to them, they have decided to penalize everyone (including they\'re good customers). I pay off my credit cards every month and have excellent credit, however one of my credit card companies decided to raise my APR to a ridiculous rate. I tried negotiating with them, but they stated that because I pay off my card every month it really doesn\'t effect me. I told them that wasn\'t the point. The point was that I am a good customer and should not be penalized if by chance there is a month in which I cannot pay my balance in full. They refused to budge. I have since decided to use that credit card once a month (and only once a month) on something like a candy bar. This way they have to process the bill, mail it out and process the payment. They will probably eventually cancel my card or come up with some kind of fee to try to charge me for doing this. However, I really don\'t care if I\'m no longer their customer. I generally use credit cards only when it\'s convenient for me not to use cash and I am more than willing to quit using credit cards all together. ","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 23:38"},{"nm":"Victim","rs":"0","ms":"If I had watched this program a couple of years back, I would have been more wiser. Yesterday morning when I checked my Citi cards statement yesterday it showed way higher minimum than it normally used to be. I was taken aback. I called them and found out that they had increased my interest rate to 29% from 12%!!! The customer representative was very cordial in telling me that over the past couple of years I have been a very valuable customer with a good payment history (always more than the minimum due before the deadline) but he said there was nothing further he could do to reduce the rate. If I have been paying them more than the minimum for the past a year and a half well before the due date then how on earth can they rip me off like this?? It is not just citicards. Chase does not want to reduce its apr for the past one year with a total disregard to my payment history. I am just surprised that people have not taken to the streets. If 50 millions are affected by this, why don\'t we take it to the street so that it really does knock on the heads of these legislators, lobbyists and the wolves that are in sheeps\' disguises. People please lets do something about this. Lets form a massive protest...if only 10% of us act it could be well over a hundred thousand individuals....it will make a big difference...America, its time to wake up!!!","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 23:38"},{"nm":"NYAmericanGirl","rs":"0","ms":"PS...I\'m all for the free market system but there are laws to protect us from other types of predators. What is the rule?  That you cannot be a predator unless you\'re a bank? The banks are engaging in predatory behavior...willfully preying on the most inexperienced consumers and those that are desperate...the ones Nessa Feddis, VP of the American Bankers Assoc. calls &quot;confused&quot;.  And about that comment...confused??? Who is she kidding? Does the concept of honesty even exist in banking world? She can\'t even verbalize what the banking industry is really doing. I almost threw up in my mouth. Mentality such as hers is a reason the American public needs protections.","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 23:30"},{"nm":"Grandma Knight","rs":"0","ms":"Banks need customers and people in today\'s world need banks just to pay bills if nothing else. It is a time saver to use electronic banking and set up drafts or automatic monthly bill paying. However, when banks begin treating customers as if they do not need their loyalty and trust they are very short sighted. People will eventually retaliate over being mistreated...it may take time to rally, and to find ways to dump the banks that mistreat good customers....but it will come to pass that the people will find ways to overcome. By the same token customers ought to be responsible, and the banks have a right to expect us to behave and keep our accounts in good order. Realistically, even careful folk may have an overdraft once or twice in a lifetime! Banks should give customers who want it an option to pay a reasonable monthly fee for &quot;checking&quot; and be relieved of the overdraft nightmares at such outrageous rates! If the banks just reinstated a basic service fee for all of us, they would make plenty of money and not need to charge overdrafts! I had good record with BOA and then last summer my usual automatic wage deposit was a day later than usual and the OG&E bill was put through two days earlier than usual! So, I had two overdraft fees on the same day at $35.00 each...and my wages were deposited the next day! The very same day, the bank took their overdraft fees of course. I felt really sick and angry with the bank and my employer and the utility company!! I am at everyones mercy...and I am not alone...we are all in this together. Will we continue as a nation of citizens who become more and more angry? and paranoid that we can\'t trust anyone?? Banks are supposed to be our trustworthy and pillars of integrity in the community. I want them to look out for customers and help them be successful...not create hardship when it is not necessary. It could be a pathway to diminishing returns for those banks who fall out of favor with customers who are tired of being treated with such disrespect. New banks need to sprout up from entrepreneurs, maybe groups will form co-ops and I can be a part owner in the business instead of risking my money on stocks? I will be an honest banker and work with my customers. It could be a more &quot;wonderful life&quot;!","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 23:20"},{"nm":"Kathy","rs":"0","ms":"When Citifinancial told me &quot;you\'re a great customer, you\'ve always paid on time, paid more than your minimum and your credit is great, but we have to raise your interest rate to 29.9% because of the economy&quot; that said it all to me.  Capitalism has run amuck and we have resorted to loansharking.  The Obama Administration had better take a hard look at how it will handle the financial crisis and act swiftly.  There is a limit to the theory that it as long as the market will bear it, a  free market is the way to go, because a free market ultimately becomes an oxymoron under this theory.  What we are currently experiencing is proof positive of the oxymoron.  ","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 23:17"},{"nm":"Loren Oury","rs":"0","ms":"In the last seven years I was never 30 days late on any credit card payment, yet had all my credit card accounts raised to between 24% and 29.99% - with the card companies using various bogus excuses.  In 2009 I refinanced and paid nearly all of them in full.  I waited several months and called Bank of America to ask for a rate reduction...instead, they cancelled all three card accounts!  I would love to see a straight-forward analysis of the total credit card debt in the US and the raw profits achieved by our banking &quot;friends&quot;.  Frontline is an awesome force, we need more emphasis on this issue.  ","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 23:16"},{"nm":"stopcrooks","rs":"0","ms":"The notion of more disclosure or better education is a canard.  When a person is paid on the 31st and buys things for a New Years Eve party at 6 stores during her lunch hour, but the bank doesn\'t credit her pay check until 3:00 p.m. so it can charge her 6 overdraft fees totaling $210, no amount of education or erudition could prevent that type of abuse.  The truth is that these are real facts that happen every day.  These charges are unadulterated theft.  As several wise judges have held, &quot;a banker with a brief case can steal more money than a hundred men with guns.&quot;  WE NEED A CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION AGENCY to preserve the safety and soundness of the financial system.  Once the banks are distrusted, the financial system will crumble.  MDonovan","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 23:16"},{"nm":"jay","rs":"0","ms":"Just watched the program.  Simply an outstanding production. The insights into the economy are intriguing.  Some takeaways...the Senate and Politians from both Parties are bought and paid for by the Lobbyists.  The attorneys for those organizations showed arrogance and near contempt.  Consumers cannot and should not expect the Government to protect them. Banks should be viewed much like Casinos.  You know you are going to lose in the end. It is a fact.  Parents must teach fiscal responsibility to their children and yet who is to be the role model?  Our Federal Government?  They are, by far, the biggest Consumer of debt in the world, and we look to them to regulate the industry.  Too bad individuals cannot simply print money like the Feds.  Ultimately, American must take responsibility for their actions and not enter into debt.  That is the only true protection.  If you stay within the frameworks outlined, there are no fees.  Don\'t spend more than you have. ","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 23:15"},{"nm":"tyrone g. williams","rs":"0","ms":"Why can\'t the government reinstate the tax rule that would allow the consumer to deduct their interset from their income tax? This would then give the consumer the ability to get some relief from these higher interest rates.","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 23:15"},{"nm":"Barry","rs":"0","ms":"I have seen many television programs in my lifetime but none that is more truthful, thought provoking, and non BS as this episode of Frontline.","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 23:03"},{"nm":"NYAmericanGirl","rs":"0","ms":"We need to start a movement that despises credit cards and despises debt. Let\'s stop using credit cards.  Lets just stop.  I\'m with the guy that says &quot;HATE DEBT&quot;. Listen folks, money is always made when someone convinces you you cannot live without something...when the truth is you can live without it. Let\'s take back control of our financial lives.","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 23:01"},{"nm":"Robert Butkiewicz","rs":"0","ms":"First lobbying is bribery,payoffs etc.This should be outlawed but never will with the lawmakers taking the bribes. We do need day to day regulation on the banks,the only thing they don\'t have is a mask and a gun(the goverment has them and if needed will back up theses crooks due to the large bribes,I mean contributions made to them).We have taxation without representation ( unless paid for by lobbyist).","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:56"},{"nm":"Daniel Spalding","rs":"0","ms":"Your stories never get to the bottom of it.  Here is the bottom of it.  When all is said and done after all the massive amounts of charges and exhorbitant interest rates have created a fictitious debt, then the bank finally &quot;Forgives&quot; the indebtedness.  They then issue a 1099 as if the victim made money on it.  That causes an income tax problem and at the same time, the bank gets a 50% tax credit for the &quot;forgiveness.&quot;  The fix is to stop giving the tax credit to the banks.  I is simple as that.","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:54"},{"nm":"Erin","rs":"0","ms":"COME ON PEOPLE.....don\'t spend money you don\'t have, no one is going to babysit you when it comes to managing your finances.\n\nAnd credit card companies provide a service: the convenience of not having to carry cash.  Don\'t take advantage of them, and they won\'t take advantage of you!!!","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:51"},{"nm":"Mark","rs":"0","ms":"It\'s a shame we can\'t resurrect President Andrew Jackson, who took on a similarily twisted and malfeasant Bank of the United States and put an end to it and it\'s perverse roots that were soiled in greed. How some things never change.  Personally I pay my card balances off each month.  I prefer to use the card company than be useried by them!  Enlightening show, thanks Frontline. God bless and peace!","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:45"},{"nm":"Lets sue them!","rs":"0","ms":"The banks practices are so predatory ! It is such a lie that you can do business without these practices which have long been outlawed in Europe. We will not change capitol hill especially after the last supreme court decision that allows Corporate America to run Capitol Hill  \<a href=&quot;http://news.yahoo.com/video/local-15749667/17749337;_ylt=Ao_WA530u49zaQ4O8pX1G2b3SpZ4&quot;\>http://news.yahoo.com/video/local-15749667/17749337;_ylt=Ao_WA530u49zaQ4O8pX1G2b3SpZ4\<\/a\> - we need to look elsewhere for solutions and we can do this - hurting their pockets. Sue them - for increasing the interest rate,  for not properly notifying you - anything. It will cost them money to defend - if we all do it - who cares what the legislation allows the banks to do - make it expensive for them to exercise these practices. Sophia","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:36"},{"nm":"Janet ","rs":"0","ms":"I just finished watching this program and I know first hand how these credit card companies work to make their money. They give their customers not enough time for them to mail in their payments, and they offer these balance transfers for these really low &quot;teaser rates&quot; and then if you\'re late one time, they\'ve got you right where they want you!  Then starts all of the late fees, interest, over the limit fees etc, etc.  And if you happen to notice it on your statement and call your credit card company they don\'t even care if you\'re upset or not. They will give you some cheesy talk off as to why they won\'t take off those fees! Then afterwards they will try to sell you some service that you don\'t want or need so that they can charge you more money!  I have since paid off all of my credit cards and we won\'t use them again. We have cut them up and said, &quot;Enough of this crap!&quot; Now we only use cash to buy what we want and if we can\'t afford it, then we just don\'t buy it.  Sometimes in life you have to learn the hard way before it sinks in!  ","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:35"},{"nm":"canucker","rs":"0","ms":"I agree the banks should be free to charge what ever they like, with disclosure to the consumer, but government is also be free to tax the banking industry and the billionaires who run it, what ever rate we the people demand to get those profits back and redistribute that money back to the people the bankers take advantage of. A 7,000,000 dollar bonus can easily become 1,000,000 take home. Make Greed non profitable. Those service charges aren\'t providing a supply of cash for the banks to loan to small business for it to function. Those never ending charges are buying ships and jets and mansions and gated communities for the people who profit from the banking industry. Tax the profiters and the industry still survives,Exploiting legislative loopholes can be diminished. ","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:34"},{"nm":"charles cole","rs":"0","ms":"Financial institutions (banks particularly) will continue to charge credit and debit card customers whatever interest rates and fees they like, working around new legislation that created some low hurdles for the industry. Until most consumers react negatively by cutting up their credit cards, calling their congressional representative and better monitoring their checking and card balances, NOTHING will change in this foul-smelling free marketplace. ","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:26"},{"nm":"Emmett ","rs":"0","ms":"WORDS OF ADVICE FOR ALL CONSUMERS: You want to stop bad bank behavior; join a  CREDIT UNION!","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:26"},{"nm":"Sandra Fodi","rs":"0","ms":"Banks today do not have employees that are financially astute, nor are they capable of explaining the fundamental facts of debts, trusts, investments and planning.  Yes, they have taken on these tasks, but by their very nature and structure, they hire people who meet banking criteria, slow, plodding, processing repetitive actions.  That is my opinion, and my experience, perhaps it is no wonder that when they have found a method to make a profit that require little effort on their part, that instead of changing it when they were caught with their hand in the cookie jar - they will just build a better cookie jar.  For those who have tried to have errors fixed when it is the &quot;bank\'s&quot; error, I feel sure that they will understand when I say that I am still waiting for a payment for the costs to have those errors fixed on mortgage documents and court records.  I have used their lending rates for the time the errors stayed on the record after they were notified to base costs.","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:24"},{"nm":"Steve","rs":"0","ms":"Why doesn\'t Ben Burnecky put a fair market value cap on the cards of 15%??? Which is 1/2 of what the banks want to charge everyone that carries a balance. Where is the relief the consumer should be getting for all the bailouts???? And the LARGE/Small COMPANYS should be lobby stronger than the individuals. This nation is really going to the dogs, if we don\'t get back to our mortals/GOD. I bet none of them banks ask the consumer what they think the fair market value of their credit cards should be?????? Its a tuff job, but thats what they get paided to do!!","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:24"},{"nm":"nancy stewart","rs":"0","ms":"Why didn\'t the program raise the issue of credit scores when credit scores can be lowered by banks simply because a consumer does NOT use credit cards!?","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:23"},{"nm":"AJY","rs":"0","ms":"I just finished watching The Card Game and I have to say that I\'m frustrated because it seems as if a lot of the blame is focused on the banks and little blame is focused on the consumer. I believe that this coincides with the government acting as an overprotective parent to Americans.  I am a banker in a small community bank and I see many clients that are not willing to accept the FREE financial advice that banks offer. In the five years I\'ve been a banker, I have yet to meet a client that comes in strictly to ask for help in managing his/her bank account. Banks offer many options to protect clients from fees and it is NOT the responsibility of the banks to keep track of your balance for you.  I meet a lot of my older clients that still diligently keep track of their bank accounts using a transaction register.  They never overdraw.  It\'s those that do not keep track of their balance that consistently come in crying about thier overdraft fees and I have to lecture them over and over about being responsible for their daily balance. I even recommend cutting their debit card up and using strictly cash but they are unwilling to do it! \nIn our bank, we\'re more than happy to refund the occasional overdraft fee but it is very frustrating when you see clients with hundreds of dollars in fees every month and you offer your advise over and over again and the client does not accept it. In my opinion; if it weren\'t for the banks &quot;preying&quot; on these &quot;victims&quot; it would be someone or something else. We need to stop enabling Americans to be irresponsible.  Even before I was a banker I was a responsible borrower. I like the advantages that come with being a responsible person and don\'t feel as if I should be punished by having to pay higher interest rates for those that are irresponsible. I do not make a lot of money as a banker but I am able to see first hand what the problem is and I can assure you: it\'s NOT the banks.  So my advise is to go to your banker and sit down with them to figure out how you can avoid the fees. I assure you, they CAN help.","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:20"},{"nm":"nancy stewart","rs":"0","ms":"The information provided in Frontline\'s The Card Game program is long overdue. That said, I waited throughout the program for some mention of Credit Score scams perpetrated by banks onto responsible individual\'s with enough sense NOT to use credit cards. It is a no win situation for the consumer when banks can take advantage of those using credit cards, and penalize those who do not. Why was this issue not raised in the program?  ","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:17"},{"nm":"Emmett","rs":"0","ms":"I wish I had a counter to keep track of the lies and BS coming out of the mouths of our politicians and the banking lobbyists on this show. If this is &quot;free market&quot; economy as that Neanderhan Richard Shelby says, why should we have laws against loan sharking as the rates charged now approach and exceed in sme cases those onerous rates. And why have laws restricting sales of marijuana? Why does governement feel protection of the people so important in this realm? \n\nIt is the most important function of government to protect its citizens from harm, of all kinds, including white collar predators. Of course underneath it all, all the politicians are millionaires thanks to these lobbyists and we cannot expect any of them to do waht is right, beyond expedient window dressing to salve the critism and provide photo ops with pens for watered down band-aids. ","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:16"},{"nm":"Wanda Hockbein","rs":"0","ms":"I just watched &quot;The Card Game&quot; program.  I couldn\'t believe the credit card/bank industry has no conscience.  The bottom line is money, money, money.  I always charge everything on my credit card because I can get a discount on my insurance with State Farm. However, I just realized I only get one cent on the dollar.  Then you have to file papers to even get this discount and it is saved only for one year.  I am a senior citizen with a small, fixed income and I will be rethinking just how much I do put on my card, even though I do pay it up each month, with no fees but it is quite large a debt for my income each month and I dare not be late. This industry, in my view, is the epitome of evil practices and our Rep/Dem representives have put themselves also in debt to these people.  Is there nothing we can do?","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:15"},{"nm":"William Taylor","rs":"0","ms":"So, the overweight fellow in front of me at the grocery store, you know the one who has $ 30.00 worth of junk food under his arm and who is buying $ 100.00 worth of lottery tickets...that is just fine....I mean, how many states take untold billions of dollars in lottery money every years from those who can least afford it? Selling lottery tickets as daydreams is more immoral than &quot;lending&quot; someone money by means of a credit card.  The banks get their money from depositors, it is the depositors money they are lending to people who use it irresponsibly and the banks have to pay those depositors back!","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:14"},{"nm":"pb","rs":"0","ms":"An interview with Ralph Nader would have cut this program length in half with more names named, more information about an entire system that is broken and riddled in short term self interest.","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:13"},{"nm":"Nancy","rs":"0","ms":"The best way to &quot;get back&quot; at these banks, if indeed that\'s what one wants to do, is to pay the bill in full, on time, every month.  Simple.  This also brings a smug satisfaction that one is in fact getting &quot;money for nothing.&quot;  ","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:13"},{"nm":"John Button","rs":"0","ms":"I was very disturbed by the program.  I wish we could go back to the old usery laws that capped interest rates.  We (the taxpayers) bailed them (the banks) out, and this is our thanks?  What ever happened to earning a reasonable rate of return.  When did our captains of industry become so greedy.  Sometimes I ashamed to be an American.  And now with thew supreme court decision, the average citizen doesn\'t stand a chance.","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:11"},{"nm":"ilse melamid","rs":"0","ms":"having watched &quot;the Card Game&quot; I simply do not understand why there is not a move to credit unions.  what is the hinderance.  do our legislaters need to hear from us?","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:11"},{"nm":"Gary","rs":"0","ms":"I am with John-in-Exile. Teach our children can to be responsible consumers and to hate the shackles of debt. Washington will not change this industry only consumers can change it. ","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 22:10"},{"nm":"Alec","rs":"0","ms":"Why do these people have such a hard time understanding fees for overcharges, late payments, and interest on outstanding balance?  Was there ever a time in the history of man where people just paid other people\'s bills without making a profit?  The very idea of credit implies that people who are credit worthy do not have to pay as much as people who are not.  In the world of bonds, they call this a risk premium.  This is why government debt yields less than corporate debt and relatively strong companies pay less than weaker ones.  \n\nI agree that the rules should be clearly written and easy to understand.  The government should stop wasting time punishing the very people they want to be giving out loans.  Instead, they should fix the schools to teach people some simple economic responsibility. Perhaps instead of buying needles for junkies (like they do here in NY), they can hand out a one page leaflet in large print saying &quot;If you don\'t pay your credit card or pay it late you will be charged&quot;.  ","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 21:57"},{"nm":"Bob K","rs":"0","ms":"The Card Game.  This show is a portrait of what\'s really wrong with this country: a total lack of personal responsibility and personal accountability, perpetuated by so called unbiased media programs such as &quot;Frontline&quot;.  Let\'s not expect our citizens to read disclosures...&quot;that\'s too hard and takes time&quot;.  Let\'s not expect our citizens to manage risk.  Let\'s just lower the bar to the point that government tells everyone what to buy, what to sell, what to wear, what kind of light bulb to use.  And you wonder why our country is crumbling around us?  \nBob","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 21:44"},{"nm":"Robert Bay","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for this informative program, but it needs to go one step further.  Given the rising rate of unemployment and continued weakness in the economy, how can credit card issuers raise interest rates to 30%.  The answer is:  continued late fees and over limit fees in order for the banks to repay bail out loans.  Since taxpayers funds were used to bail out these companies, why not charge the same taxpayers for the repayment?  Additionally, to op out of the 30% charge, you need to cancel the charge account which adversely impacts the consumer\'s credit score.  We are allowing the finance companies and credit reporting agencies to regulate our lives versus the gov\'t. regulating them.  Shame on the Bush and Obama administrations for allowing this to continue!","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 21:30"},{"nm":"Jenny H.","rs":"0","ms":"Wow.  I believe that these lobbyists would eat there young if they were starving.  And maybe the American tax payer should have charged 460% interest every two weeks of not paying off the TARP.","pt":"Jan 26, 2010 18:56"},{"nm":"John-in-Exile","rs":"0","ms":"I used to have a boss who operated a large, growing social service agency successfully for many years.  He had one peculiarity that, finally, served the agency very well.  He HATED DEBT, and did everything he could to grow the agency without incurring ongoing debt.  As Business Manager I thought he was too retrograde and conservative, but he was right and I was wrong.  Now I would do all I could to ingrain in every high school student this conviction--HATE DEBT.  Every college student must learn not to enjoy debt, but to HATE DEBT.  This is harder in the short run, but in the long run now debt literally enslaves them. ","pt":"Jan 25, 2010 15:31"},{"nm":"mary","rs":"0","ms":"We need good old fashion HONESTY and INTEGRITY rember those words... ","pt":"Jan 25, 2010 01:16"},{"nm":"germ","rs":"0","ms":"we don\'t need credit card reform. we need education. the sad fact is, most americans DO NOT understand what compounding interest, late fees, or how to balance a check book. I will grant that the credit card companies and banks are definitely taking advantage of the situation. But, if people were more knowledgeable, they wouldn\'t get into trouble, and wouldn\'t have to worry about penalties. I got into trouble in my 20\'s, and 12 yrs later i am still feeling the burden of my mistakes. I also knew full well what would happen to me. I can read.","pt":"Dec 10, 2009 00:26"},{"nm":"R. J. Bracken","rs":"0","ms":"&quot;People will always take money if you give it to them.&quot; To me, that says it all. It doesn\'t matter what regulations the government has on lenders and banks, they will always find a way to exploit those who don\'t know how to manage their money. And I think that message was clearly conveyed in this documentary.\n\nHowever, it would have been nice to see Lowell Bergman push just a little harder when interviewing those who represent financial institutions/lobbyists. You could tell they were in a corner, as they kept side-stepping the main points they were being asked - the fact that they are taking advantage of the financially unstable people in society - and sticking to their key messages: that they offer full disclosure and that \'some\' people are irresponsible. One then only has to point out that if that were the case, then their profits should theoretically be significantly smaller, less people would be in debt, and this investigative journalism wouldn\'t be needed. \n\nOtherwise, excellent job as always, Frontline. Very informative. ","pt":"Dec 10, 2009 00:08"},{"nm":"Jun","rs":"0","ms":"It seems like there are more villains than superheroes on these days out there. ","pt":"Dec  9, 2009 23:34"},{"nm":"casey","rs":"0","ms":"dont buy crap you dont have money for. its not that hard. banks have to make money too","pt":"Dec  9, 2009 22:24"},{"nm":"Jasmine Taylor","rs":"0","ms":"Its stunning to see what kind of tricks and trades the creditors and these bank companies will tyr to impose on you just for some quick bucks... Just amazing to know what these banks are doing to people with todays economy. Crazy is all i can say...","pt":"Dec  9, 2009 13:55"},{"nm":"Zeke Rozich","rs":"0","ms":"A predator looks at what it wants, and takes it, even if they have to kill you to get it.","pt":"Dec  9, 2009 12:00"},{"nm":"Jenny Pepper","rs":"0","ms":"I just watched this program and had an ah-ha moment.  My eldest daughter has to have a senior service project at her high school.  Just listening to Ms Nessa Feddis, the VP of American Bankers Assoc. and her smug comments, gave me a brilliant idea to share with my daughter for her project.  A couple of years ago a local, rather small bank in Indiana, called One Source, started a program to offer \'Free\' checking and debit cards to the students from the nearby high school.  At the time I wondered how and why they would potentially draw in 800 students to their banking system for \'Free\'.  I did figure it out a few months ago when I called the bank to transfer some money to my daughters\' account.  Just in casual conversation I found out that the debit card can be overdrawn, for a fee of course.  But the clincher was that we could not OPT-OUT of this \'courtesy\'.  My student has not overdrawn her acct so we had no idea that it was even an option.  Now I know that beginning July 1, 2010, you can OPT-OUT of the overdraft option.  I think my daughter will have a real blast devising a clever way to inform all 800 of her fellow classmates.  Perhaps she can even get a bank rep to show up at the school with form letters in had to give to the students!","pt":"Dec  7, 2009 13:54"},{"nm":"Personal Responsibility","rs":"0","ms":"What ever happened to personal responsibility?  You should be aware of what you can and can not afford.  When was the last time that someone simply saved for a vaction or that item they want.  I personally have a friend that filed bankruptcy claiming that he could not afford his house and bills.  To my surprise he purchased a new boat with a condo on a lake.  Why is that even possible.  I believe that you should take responsibility for your own actions. This goes for everyone in the armed forces to the average joe.  If anything needs to be corrected it should be the education so people do not overdraft or have to go to payday loans.  Why are they living above thier income level.  ","pt":"Dec  6, 2009 23:46"},{"nm":"Sal Collora","rs":"0","ms":"I just finished watching this program on my DVR, and it was funny to see debit cards swiping at a shop where there are $4 lattes.  No one asked the Nordstrom customer who is a &quot;freelance editor&quot; why she needs to shop at Nordstrom where everything is so expensive.  Why is she carrying a balance?  No one asked the man who is bankrupt why he\'s not flipping burgers at McDonalds.  It\'s also quite amazing to me that no one asked, &quot;Who will find this new consumer protection agency?&quot;  Oh wait?  They\'ll have to BORROW to do it.  Just like the people who want something they can\'t afford, we\'ll just add it to the pile of America\'s debt.  I think After seeing this, Mr. Bergman should do a show on how all these existing agencies with existing authority fight with each other over turf.  It\'s just accepted that government is bloated and ineffective.  We need Frontline to tell us that bankers are in business to make profits.  ","pt":"Dec  6, 2009 01:49"},{"nm":"Kristin","rs":"0","ms":"My husband and I are living paycheck to paycheck right now, just like many other Americans.  We have paid the high price of overdraft fees and credit card fees.  I am so glad I watched this program-we have closed our Bank of America account and opened a credit union account that allowed us to turn off overdraft protection and instead link our account to a savings and vacation account in the event of an overdraft.  More people should make the switch to credit unions.  Those of us on a budget should avoid using credit if possible.  They\'re preying on us.  Let\'s take our hard earned money back from these predatory credit card companies and banks!","pt":"Dec  5, 2009 22:47"},{"nm":"SSG Croall","rs":"0","ms":"I Have the charge to teach Soldier not just common Soldiering skill are the technical knowledge of working on an aircraft but also about life. One of the problems that get most of my Soldiers is finances.  I know for a fact that Pay Day loans or illegal for Soldiers but I Know for a fact that Soldiers at FT Bragg use them and they only have to go a block off post to get this loan at 50% interest. ","pt":"Dec  5, 2009 15:12"},{"nm":"Greg R. Jones","rs":"0","ms":"Save the world and send this video to everyone you can for free. After watching they will praise you for your efforts. Would that not be the greatest thing you could do for mankind. May God keep you in his heart I will ask him to do so. Thank you.","pt":"Dec  4, 2009 14:43"},{"nm":"Matt","rs":"0","ms":"Don\'t buy things you can\'t afford.  And that includes college.  If you can\'t afford to pay $80,000 for a degree from UCLA, don\'t go to college.  College is another ripoff designed to get you into debt.  ","pt":"Dec  4, 2009 04:33"},{"nm":"youdontknowyourself","rs":"0","ms":"There are tons of people who say things like, &quot;don\'t people manage their finances,&quot; or &quot;it\'s just a bunch of people who don\'t know how to live within their means.&quot;  It seems like these people are answering their own question without even knowing about it.  Do you really think these people knew what they were getting into?  Really?  They really knew that they would end up bankrupt, be milked dry of all their money, and would have to fork over unholy interest payments? Really? They really knew that?  See there\'s this thing called information asymmetry (wikipedia), and it\'s how many industries induce widening profit margins in the modern era.  Why restrict credit to people who can\'t really afford it when we can use them as a revenue stream!  Because, let\'s be honest, profits scale with customer base as long as we find the sweet spot that lets us squeeze them just enough.  Sure many of them will eventually crash hard because of our practices, but the great thing is we can blame them and just decry \'individual freedom\'.  Yes, individual freedom, while we\'re at it we should probably legalize cocaine--individual freedom and all...oh wait...","pt":"Dec  3, 2009 21:37"},{"nm":"juan","rs":"0","ms":"I think having free markets and no regulation is the worst thing that could happen for the consumer. the main business culture in America is maximum profits at all cost. morals and ethics are just road bumps to be avoided if possible. if you want examples of this look at energy companies that didn\'t care if the elderly died because of heat stroke in California, companies like Enron. people in California before deregulation where paying around 80 to 100 dollars a month afterwords I myself payed 300 dollars a month. the companies had not done a thing different like build new power plants over night or something. another one is cell phone companies especially the two biggest companies Verizon and at&t. in economics there is a theory call economies of scale that says the bigger you get the cheaper it is to run a business because it can buy supplies at a cheaper price and and lower waste and inefficiencies. this in theory would mean that the consumer would benefit because of lower prices so how come these to companies haven\'t lowered their prices? how much did that cell phone you purchase real cost the cell phone company. why can I not take phone that I purchased at full retail cost and have it work with any carrier? because there is no regulation to make sure that I can do that. we need regulation to protect the little guy form unequal positions in the market place and guess what if you don\'t have at least a million dollars in assets you are a little guy.                                                                                                         it is really sad to read some of the comments here there is a arrogance  that at because your not in the bottom of the economic food chain it is OK to screw over the person who is. people have this mindset from health care to anything else just remember in this society your economic position is not assured. just as people climb up others slide down how hard do you want to make it when you slide down.                ","pt":"Dec  3, 2009 21:34"},{"nm":"Laurel","rs":"0","ms":"I want to say that I appreciate that for some time now an attitude of entitlement has arisen from many Americans.  We are litigious society that feels others are responsible for our woes and should be raked across the coals for their wrongs--but never us.  Each of us, and we are not ignorant masses, has a responsibility to be an informed consumer and to balance our budgets.  It is of course easy to point fingers and say--You should have paid your bills!  It is not always easy to do so.  THe problem with our heavy reliance on credit cards doesn\'t stem necessarily from ignorance or stupidity in our financial planning for the most part, but instead for those things we can\'t plan on.  Death of a loved one, illness, pregnancy, a new baby, and the big one for today--unexpected termination of employment.  All of you who think the masses are too stupid to figure this one out are wrong.  Many of the people seeking bankruptcy and other ways to alleviate their debt who have fallen prey to credit card companies are good people, responsible people who have fallen on hard times.  I know we all have a duty to keep our finances in order--but I beg sympathy for Americans trying so hard to figure out where to go from broke.","pt":"Dec  3, 2009 15:55"},{"nm":"charles park","rs":"0","ms":"RE:  Will there be a Run on banks caused by Credit Card Companies?\n\nI have recently withdrawn all my bank accounts to the bare minimum and canceled my direct deposits, due to the new aggressive posture of credit card companies.  My friends have been given notice that their accounts are frozen pending payment of their debts.  Although this is a legal remedy to delinquent debt, I have never known them to be this aggressive and quick to use it for such small amounts.  \n\nAlthough I myself have not been stung, I look to the great deal of trouble my friends have endured: seeing house payments, car and medical payments fall delinquent; seeing checks bounce accruing additional fees; and seeing recently unemployed households put into desperate financial peril due to this tactic.\n\nIt is clear to me that having money in the bank has become too risky. I am sure that I am not alone.  It is only a matter of time before this aggression will cause others to protect their assets by keeping their money “under the mattress” rather than in the bank.  This inevitable run cannot be good for an already credit starved banking system.\n\nFor proof look of this, look to statistics of declining deposits in personal accounts and increased legal activity.\n\nCharles Park.","pt":"Dec  3, 2009 14:12"},{"nm":"RC","rs":"0","ms":"I watched this show and thought it was good, however it lacked a proper update. I\'ve seen the previous credit card show and thought that was very good. This one should have explained much more the current changes being put into effect.","pt":"Dec  3, 2009 11:46","er":"\<a href=&quot;../seven/&quot;\>This page\<\/a\> of our site offers more on what changes are coming from the  new legislation taking full effect in early 2010, and other rules from banks and the Federal Reserve.  "},{"nm":"Herbert Sweet","rs":"0","ms":"There once was a time when lenders evaluated borrowers ability to repay before making loans.  And even then, the loan was secured by the item being purchased.  In addition, there were  caps on interest rates.  These were called usury laws.  Apparently this has all been forgotten.","pt":"Dec  2, 2009 22:29"},{"nm":"Joe ","rs":"0","ms":"Balance your checkbook and live within your means!  Do you really need a 42&quot; flat screen?  I remember when credit was a privilege not a right and most people respected that.  ","pt":"Dec  2, 2009 20:44"},{"nm":"JMM","rs":"0","ms":"I haven\'t watched this show yet, but I\'ve been following the articles in the New York Times, and will watch this online.\n\nThis is about credit. I do think that if we want to eliminate poverty and develop  equality, then we should be investing in the people who were born into lower wage earner households, not gouging them.  Gouging them through fees and higher interest rates seems criminal to me, as it has a built-in danger that destroys lives.   \n\nWhat I\'d like to see are shows that ask why credit is necessary in the first place. Is that a societal change if compared to lenders and borrowers one hundred years ago?  How often did consumers have to borrow from the local store owners back then?  And what kind of interest rates did they face?  Or does this mean that the credit process has escalated?\n\nWhy have wages gone down?  Why isn\'t one salary enough to provide owned shelter, food, and the necessities for a family? \n\nI\'m under the impression that when women entered the workforce, parts of the economy realized they could raise costs in order to benefit from two combined salaries instead of one.  Why not knock those prices back down?  Especially since there are so many one parent households.  Can this be done?     \n\nI hope I see answers to those questions when I watch the show.  ","pt":"Dec  2, 2009 20:29"},{"nm":"Yuri","rs":"0","ms":"It is weird that the program never mentions that for millions Americans paying their bills in full and on time, the credit cards are a cash machine. Those people do not pay a single cent in interest and every year they get a few hundreds dollars worth of cashback or points in return.\n\nAlso, even for people who do not care to read the fine print, there are (courtesy of the free market) tons of companies offering credit consolidation, helping avoid the high interest payments and late fees. If even then some people end up in trouble with their credit cards, they have nobody blame but themselves.\n\nThere is a reason for punishing interest and fees. The people who are paying them cannot be regarded as financially responsible. They will be in default sooner or later and interest and fees are the only way for banks to get at least some of their money back.","pt":"Dec  2, 2009 19:52"},{"nm":"Arun Karmrkar","rs":"0","ms":"The credit card culture itself is a blow to the economy,personal as well as public.Looking back to the traditional habit of people,particularly Indians,we use to save for the future.The total amount of the small savings in India is virtually the backbone of the public sector investment.However the credit card culture induces people not only to ignore provision for tomorrow but also to spend tomorrow\'s money even before it is earned.Also, most of the money spent through cc is for sheer consumerism.People themselves have to stay away from all such gimmicks. ","pt":"Dec  2, 2009 06:55"},{"nm":"kenneth ","rs":"0","ms":"If you want to control the interest rates that banks set on credit cards and fees, then buy their stocks. It\'s call a takeover! Get a 100,000 people togeather at $10.00 a month and start buying. The banker will start running from you. Equity ownership is how you defeat the banks. ","pt":"Dec  2, 2009 02:23"},{"nm":"c eberwein","rs":"0","ms":"It really angered Me to see the fox regulating the Hen house!!!!!This industry apears to have no boundries.I am experiencing some of the same complications that many other consumers are experiencing.I feel that we the people have the right to start a class action law suit against all who threaten the American way of life.","pt":"Dec  2, 2009 01:29"},{"nm":"Kimberly","rs":"0","ms":"I have experienced most of the situations explored in the show.  This was less of an expose\' and more of a reality check, reminding me why I check my bank account balance twice a day and why I have no credit cards.  CASH..........for as long as we can use it.  I have even started picking up money orders from my bank to pay bills, I KNOW what order the money will come out of my account that way.  An even bigger joke is the fact that if you don\'t have a bank account and want to cash a check, even a paycheck, drawn on that bank, you have to pay a fee!!!  And what about automatic bill-pay, difficult to keep track of it all.  My tent in the woods is starting to look pretty inviting.","pt":"Dec  2, 2009 01:13"},{"nm":"Brendan L","rs":"0","ms":"Why doesn’t Frontline take a look at Canadian or UK in regards to lending laws? The US wasn’t the first to try and make money on the backs of the consumer - however both Canada and the UK regulated quickly, I was there when the Canadian government passed legislator, there wasn’t time for the bank to react. I know it seems strange but in England banking isn’t seen as this world with endless financial gain, they realize that yes you can make money and very good money in banking, however you don’t need to practice over excesses.","pt":"Dec  2, 2009 01:07"},{"nm":"Doug","rs":"0","ms":"While I agree that some fees banks charge, particularly overdraft fees, are ridiculous the fact is that if you don\'t try to spend money that you don\'t have, you don\'t pay any fees. The same is true of credit card over limit fees. There is something to be said for personal responsibility.\n\nI would like to see a segment done on the Refund Anticipation Loans (RAL\'s) which are pushed by the big tax preparation chains.","pt":"Dec  2, 2009 01:04"},{"nm":"William Ford","rs":"0","ms":"The Banks are nothing more than &quot;PREDATORS&quot;! Just look at Dodd and Shelby, how long have these two held office in Congress. There are Presidential limits ie. 2 terms. The likes of Dodd legislate as if they own America, thus are interested not in the country, but Dodd\'s self-interest! \nThe real war is not in Afghanistan but in America. All great empires implode before exploding and America is on the precipice.\nIt is time to take back America, before China takes what is left!","pt":"Dec  1, 2009 17:39"},{"nm":"lulu","rs":"0","ms":"The solution is very easy...lets stick it to them. ","pt":"Dec  1, 2009 17:17"},{"nm":"Rob","rs":"0","ms":"The government is just as complicit as the banks.  Why didn’t the interviewer ask Senator Dodd and others why the government doesn’t go back to pre-Lautenberg  days and permit taxpayers to deduct credit card interest  once again? This would really help out “The Man on Main Street”.  No, the government is just as greedy as the banks.  They collect income tax from the credit card company’s interest payments (interest is considered earnings) and they tax the exact same (after tax) interest payments made by the poor saps holding the high interest rate credit cards (double-dipping).  And our representatives  walk away shifting the entire blame on the banks, go figure.  To sum up, the program suffered from a weak interviewer and weak questions, next time have Larry King or Barbara Walters do “The Card Game” interview. \n","pt":"Dec  1, 2009 15:42"},{"nm":"RB","rs":"0","ms":"Kudos to our stronger citizens who made better choices and had the where-withal to avoid card debt. Having said that, consider how purchasing power in real terms has declined for 3-4 decades due the inflated costs of basic needs such as transportation, housing, energy, mandated insurances, and healthcare. Coincidentally, stingy employers - less fettered by unions - failed to share the rewards of amazing productivity increases over the same period. Many of these employers begrudge the common laborer even a subsistance wage, decrying the need to compete globally while offshoring American jobs and importing foreign labor! Meantime, workers in this country have less paid sick time and less vacation time than others. Obviously, we are not competing globally in those areas! (&quot;trickle down&quot; economics really does work!) Consider too a national culture of consumerism reinforced by all the media. Is it any wonder that so many have fallen prey to the vagaries of the card banks? But shame on those of us who didn\'t have the hundreds of cash dollars for auto repairs, dental repairs, medical copays, prescribed drugs, or higher education! Our fault for not stupidly riding around on buses with rotten teeth and utilizing ERs all the more...the banks must remain blameless.! I say shame on them and on a nation that allows WORKING families to be evermore impoverished by removing regulatory restraints of predatory business practices, and permitting ever more consolidations that only fly in the face of truly FREE MARKETS. (ie, when was the last time we saw price wars between our neighborhood filling stations?) Shame on you also, Mr.Congressman; you truly are the best governor money can buy and a most talented renderer of lip service to the little guy. You have a lot of moxie, Mr.Senator, to insist the taxpaying citizenry of this country bail out these banks because \'they are too big to fail\'; yet hold OUR feet to the fire when we fail to repay them after our employers fail us!\n","pt":"Dec  1, 2009 12:36"},{"nm":"Jon","rs":"0","ms":"I understand that some of these situations are unfair to the consumer, but a lot of the problems presented in this episode seems to be based on people either spending money the do not have or not being aware of their account balances.","pt":"Dec  1, 2009 11:07"},{"nm":"amanda","rs":"0","ms":"I applaud Frontline for another good report. However, showcasing Senator Dodd as someone who fights for the people\'s rights is a complete joke. Dodd is in bed so deep with the bank lobby and receives so much money from the banking industry. So, please don\'t tell consumers and the public who watches your program that Dodd is working for us because he is not - one Google search will tell you as such.","pt":"Nov 30, 2009 21:20","er":"For more on the industry\'s lobbying and financial clout, see \<a href=&quot;../themes/lobbying.html&quot;\>this page\<\/a\>."},{"nm":"Kevin","rs":"0","ms":"While Congress bemoans the fact that the card issuers are going after those who are in a better financial position (supposedly) to make up for those who aren\'t, all we hear out of Washington these days is the need to raise taxes on those making over $150K or $200K a year (the bar keeps moving) to make up for lost tax revenue; supposedly because they can afford it.  CONGRESS WANTS TO EXERCISE THE EXACT SAME PRACTICE ON THE TAXPAYERS!!!!  Did no one at FRONTLINE see the hypocrisy in their complaints?  For the credit card industry, the practice is called &quot;abusive.&quot; For Congress, it\'s called &quot;fairness.&quot;\n\nAnd why, exactly, does the banking/credit card lobby have so much power over the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs?  Their lobby has exactly as much power as the committee allows them to have.  If they really, genuinely wanted to pass significant legislation they would simply shut the door in the face of the lobby.  But instead, they sit there and shrug their collective shoulders and try to tell us this is as tough as they can get because the industry has a very powerful lobby.  I honestly don\'t see how any of them can sleep at night.","pt":"Nov 30, 2009 19:19"},{"nm":"Malcolm","rs":"0","ms":"There is only one message these people understand. Cut up ALL your credit cards. Send them ALL back to their owners. Cancel the lot. Pay them off. When you stop living off credit they - like the leeches they are - stop living off you.\nRemember buying things you don\'t need to impress people you don\'t like with money you don\'t have is why they make billions. All you have to do is stop.","pt":"Nov 30, 2009 19:04"},{"nm":"Mikke Senneke","rs":"0","ms":"While I track with the attitude that banks have been exploitive and even criminal usurers, it is also the case that too many people have viewed credit cards as a way to get something for nothing. &quot;Nothing&quot; meaning &quot;I\'ll worry about it later.&quot; Or people wanted to be part of the big financial global casino, playing at the embossed-plastic blackjack table rather than at, say, the Wall Street table. \n\nI\'m way liberal, but I consider the responsibility of taking on debt to lie solely with the person who signs the contract, whether that means the Option ARM or the credit card statement.\n\nI\'ve ever had only one credit card, through my credit union, 9.99% APR, no fees. It gets paid off at the end of each month and serves only to move cash from the mortgage-week paycheck to the freer paycheck. I have never understood any other use of unsecured/revolving credit (i.e., debt).\n\nDuring the Greenspan boom my partner and I would get over $100,000 a month in credit card offers, and millions of dollars each month in mortgage debt offers. EACH MONTH! Did we take any? NO! Did we come off our actual income-based budget because debt was easy? NO! \n\nMost people we\'ve heard from who are in debt trouble didn\'t say no. Now they are faced with the consequences of earlier &quot;easy&quot; choices. \n\nWhereas the former generation of financial exploiters made big money off of this, now we have government, education, and media saviors advancing their careers as the sudden champions of the oppressed. Before, they encouraged everyone to bulk up on education, housing, and consumer debt. ","pt":"Nov 30, 2009 16:57"},{"nm":"RCharles","rs":"0","ms":"In October I misplaced and did not pay my Chase VISA statement, where my total balance was $71.05.  Chase added a $39 Late Fee to my next statement, along with Finance Charges.   I paid the amount in full, then sent an email asking Chase to reconsider the $39 fee; they relied &quot;we are charging the fee because we can.&quot;   When I called to close the account they said I should have called to discuss the Late Fee, then added I would be charged additional Finance Charges in the next statement; I have closed the account. There were $12.80 in REWARD Dollars remaining, which I directed them to apply to the balance due; I paid the rest in full.\n\nI don\'t think Chase is much worse than other banks, they have just been getting away with anything for so long they don\'t know how to operate in a fair and honest way.  Hopefully the congress will hear from those of us pissed off at the big bank bailouts and huge bonuses while we get screwed.\n\nRCharles","pt":"Nov 30, 2009 07:31"},{"nm":"Robert Cunningham","rs":"0","ms":"At one point I had over $50,000 in credit card debt, but it was no problem at all.  How did I do it?  Because the credit card companies loaned it to me for a limited amount of time at 0%.  I then took that money and put it in a money market account paying 3-4% interest until the money was due back.  MBNA loaned me over $35,000 and the monthly payment was only $15.00.  Of course, those &quot;great&quot; free money days are gone forever.  My only debt now is $5,500. from American Express fixed for life at 2.99%, it was $13,000 last year, but I am paying it down each month, and my credit score is always over 750. I sympathize with many of the stories on this show and these comments as well, but I just wanted to say that not all of the credit stories are bad.  I made hundreds of dollars from the credit card companies with their 0% interest loans, but that was then, and this is now.  ","pt":"Nov 30, 2009 03:52"},{"nm":"Jesy Chua","rs":"0","ms":"Thanks for the wonderful service you provide at frontline. This is the third full program I have seen and I must say I enjoy the in-depth discussion on issues, and feel much more informed on the news of the day.\n\nI don\'t ever watch TV nowadays as my schedule rarely permits it, but I can depend on the website to view shows I have missed.\n\nThanks again, and hope that you  continue offering such much needed online content \n\n\n","pt":"Nov 29, 2009 23:41"},{"nm":"Dave","rs":"0","ms":"Chase bank has instituted a new plan where they offer to leave your credit card account open but raise your rate form say 15% to 24%. IF YOU DON\'T CLOSE YOUR ACCOUNT THE NEW RATE TAKE EFFECT. They just did this on my business account. They said they sent a letter but it was bever received. Funny how I always get their bills but the letter somehow got lost. I HAVE NEVER BEEN LATE ON A PAYMENT SO I WOULD HATE TO SEE HOW THEY TREAT SOMEONE WHO LOST THEIR JOB.\n   I have 3 accounts with Chase or I should say I had 3 accounts. While the other 2 accounts were not affected I decided a bank like Chase doesn\'t deserve a penny more of my money and close all 3 accounts. I was thinking of opening an account at the local branch but not now.\n   Hopefully Southwest Airlines will wise up and dump this bank for their Rapid Rewards Visa. I love Southwest but will have to re-asses my loyalty to them based on their affiliation with a cut throat bank like CHASE BANK. \n   Oh, and all my points for charging on the account....They prevented me from using them too. CLOSE YOUR ACCOUNTS WITH CHASE BEFORE THEY DO IT TO YOU!!! \n   ","pt":"Nov 29, 2009 17:29"},{"nm":"Pamela Harvey","rs":"0","ms":"Your elected officials are recieving kickbacks from banking lobbies to go against the consumer. The fact of the matter is don\'t expect Congress to pass any significant legislation to counteract this problem. The consumer needs to take responsibility . The fact of the matter is the masses do not understand the money game  and the sad thing about it is that the ignorant and stupid masses continue to make the same mistakes out there when managing money. If the masses want to make a dent in all of this, pay off the full amount and then shread the card. Put items on layaway. ","pt":"Nov 29, 2009 17:01"},{"nm":"Leah","rs":"0","ms":"I am someone experiencing credit card debt, and while I can see both sides of the critiques you\'ve all made about this Frontline episode, I feel it\'s important to add to the discussion what it\'s like to have a major medical challenge and be unemployed.  Most of my credit card debt was accumulated after I was injured (2005), went on short-term disability, lost my job because of the injury, went on unemployment and then didn\'t qualify for disability.  I was then out of work for a year, when unemployment benefits ran out after 6 months; there were no extensions like there are now.  I had savings and they were all spent on health insurance, rent and food.  Because I hadn\'t entirely used up my savings, I couldn\'t receive any state benefits.  I used what little cash I had to pay for health insurance and rent, and I used my credit card to pay for necessities like food and out-of-pocket medical expenses.  I didn\'t have the option to live with relatives or friends at the time, so my situation was financially quite challenging.  If I had lived in Europe when I became injured, I would have had health insurance while I was unemployed and more robust unemployment benefits.  Some Americans, like me, wouldn\'t be in deep credit card debt if our government provided universal access to health care and more support during periods of unemployment.  In particular, there needs to be support not just for the poor, but also for the middle class, who are currently excluded from benefits like Medicaid.  While I love this country, I have recently experienced the consequences of a seriously-lacking social safety net, and I know I wouldn\'t currently have so much lingering credit card debt if I had received greater governmental support when I needed it most.  I hope the health care system changes for the better.  That would reduce reliance on credit cards for thousands of Americans.","pt":"Nov 29, 2009 16:50"},{"nm":"Cindy","rs":"0","ms":"I found this story when I was reading a Ripoff Report at Ripoffreport.com at the \'Bank of America\' page of that site. This is the 2nd time I\'ve watched this story. I\'m hooked on FRONTLINE now! Thanks for being there, FRONTLINE.","pt":"Nov 29, 2009 13:24"},{"nm":"Rick Evans","rs":"0","ms":"There are two types of persons for whom I sympathize regarding credit cards. First are those with an unexpected medical crisis. For them there could be some type of special low interest government loan to pay off the card and paid off over a period of time. The second is someone who loses a job long term and runs out of savings.\n\nOtherwise, almost all of the people typically profiled as &quot;victims&quot; of credit card companies are at fault for their plight. The beginning of the program pointed out how some consumers would run up a big plastic debt then break their piggy bank house to pay off the plastic then reload cards again. These are spoiled toddlers in adult sized bodies.\n\nI\'ve never carried a card balance for more than a single pay period and have had at least one credit card since around 1975 when then Chemical Bank changed my &quot;cash machine card&quot; into a Master Charge. I\'ve never cared about my interest rate; only my having a no annual fee card. The purpose of a charge card is convenience; not to act as magic tooth fairy.\n\nIt\'s hard for me to sympathize with whiny debit card users. If you have no real time way of tracking the amount of money in your checking account then you shouldn\'t be using a debit card. Hint, hint: The cash in your wallet measures spending in real time.","pt":"Nov 28, 2009 23:11"},{"nm":"Toby","rs":"0","ms":"I am a progressive, but I feel the POV of this show is over attributing the problem to the industry. Where is the show exploring American\'s addiction to debt and consumption? Where is the show exploring general irresponsibility of many individuals? \n\nThe banks deserve their blame, and they\'ve gotten enough public flogging. They deserve some regulations but not to be paraded as clowns. It is we consumers who need to be flogged publicly because many of us have exonerated ourselves. Yeah, why blame ourselves if we could blame some bankers or lobbyists on TV?\n\nI don\'t hold anti-consumerism sentiments either but what we really need is this: more sophisticated personal financial planning and theory in MIDDLE SCHOOL. If (mostly poor) people don\'t hold certain formative or fundamental views on wealth accumulation or conceptual understanding of debt and risk then things would be exactly as predicted in the final minutes of this show. Banks will figure out new ways to lend and people who don\'t know better about their own situations and the banks will fall for them.","pt":"Nov 28, 2009 22:49"},{"nm":"David","rs":"0","ms":"Great piece on credit cards and why I have never owned one!\nI hope that more people will continue to voluntarily get themselves into debt. That way, the government can bail out more corporations through quantitative easing and my gold and silver stocks will continue to go up. \nKeep it up everyone!","pt":"Nov 28, 2009 19:55"},{"nm":"Abaco","rs":"0","ms":"Our whole political system is a sham... beginning with politicians and judges and voters who keep deluding themselves that they can ever be trusted.  P&J\'s are the enablers in our banking & corporate bribery system violating the purpose for the American Revolution.  In exchange for bribes, they are responsible for enabling usury and deregulation.  Nothing has changed since the election nor ever will until the people stop tolerating all this nonsense.\n\nRIGHTtoCONSENT.com presents a real solution... We the People exercising our Right to consent to the laws proposed, enacted and enforced by our politicians and judges.  The illusion of our phony check & balance system controlled by politicians and judges has never worked throughout history.","pt":"Nov 28, 2009 19:31"},{"nm":"McDonald","rs":"0","ms":"     For what it is worth, I provided most of the\n     information, angles and names for the original Frontline piece on the card\n     industry, “The Secret History of the Credit Card.”  I\n     believe the NYT and Frontline initially took an interest in the area\n     because of my articles in the American Banker that exposed bankcard\n     abuses.  That said, I was not impressed by “The Card\n     Game.”\n\n     For starters, it spent so much time on\n     Providian’s former CEO that he ended up looking reasonable.  In\n     fact, he cynically ran a quasi-criminal operation that severely harmed\n     massive numbers of vulnerable consumers.  He got away scot free (and\n     filthy rich) because the OCC didn’t want to impose criminal\n     punishments.\n\n     Frontline’s coverage last night also\n     was too kind to Senator Dodd.  His CARD Act, despite what Frontline\n     and most pundits think, is a disaster for consumers.  Had Carolyn\n     Maloney’s House bill been enacted instead, there would have been\n     true, rational reform.  Dodd’s law takes away tens of billions\n     in revenues from card issuers that are currently losing their shirts.\n     Invariably, they are banks.  And that means they are bound by law to\n     make a profit – that is, to generate revenues that exceed their\n     costs, which right now include billions in losses.  The purpose of the\n     law is to protect depositors and other investors in the system.\n\n     The CARD Act has forced banks – in the\n     middle of a scary recession – to send a billion change-of-terms\n     letters announcing the highest APRs in history (most of them in the 20-36%\n     range).  It is not an answer to the problem to argue that Congress\n     should have forced the banks to eat the losses.  Doing so would have\n     led to a market crash.\n\n     To make matters worse, Dodd’s CARD Act\n     tightened credit standards so much that it has already caused millions of\n     consumers to lose their Visa or MasterCards.  The overwhelming\n     majority of them are low income, ethnic cardholders who pay their accounts\n     on time.  But thanks to Dodd, they will now either lose the cards or\n     end up paying 25-50% more in finance charges.\n\n     I have been involved with the bankcard\n     industry almost from its inception in the late 60s.  In the mid 70s I\n     worked with Bess Meyerson to promote plain language agreements and\n     anti-discrimination legislation.  In those days, bankcard customers\n     were mostly white males.  The CARD Act risks a return to that time and\n     style.\n\n     It also risks deepening and prolonging the\n     recession.  The sticker shock from usurious APRs, tighter credit lines\n     and canceled accounts undoubtedly will constrain consumer spending.\n     And that in turn means people will lose jobs, especially in the retail\n     sector that relies so heavily on card spending.  As bad as the\n     practices of the card industry were, they did not deserve a remedy that\n     puts tens of thousands on the breadline.\n\n     In short, Congress was not thoughtful in\n     enacting the CARD Act.  Nor were its members smart to allow a corrupt,\n     hypocritical Senator to bully them into ignoring economically sensible\n     alternatives (e.g., Maloney’s bill).  Dodd didn’t do\n     anything for years against the industry because of all the PAC money it\n    gave him to sit still and because his powerful colleagues, Senators Daschle\n     and Biden, were the Senate’s primary protectors (and enablers) of the\n     card industry.  I had advised Frontline to look into this side of the\n     story several months ago, but I guess they didn’t think it\n     mattered.  In all my years in the industry, I hated PAC programs more\n     than all the other grizzly things the industry did.\n\n     That’s it.  Last night Frontline\n     missed the bigger story.  Congress has made matters considerably\n     worse.","pt":"Nov 28, 2009 17:41"},{"nm":"Kathryn","rs":"0","ms":"Be smarter than these banks. Live within your means. Build a nest egg. Keep your credit in good shape. And for pete\'s sake get an account a credit union, and not a for-profit bank. I recently lost my job, but I am not worried because I didn\'t get in over my head and I saved money. ","pt":"Nov 28, 2009 17:14"},{"nm":"B. Smith ","rs":"0","ms":"Welcome to capitalism, everybody works the bank, including the government.  Nationalise the banks and end this undemocratic form of slavery","pt":"Nov 28, 2009 13:14"},{"nm":"Mike","rs":"0","ms":"Good show, presenting clear evidence that regulation in the credit card industry is needed, as is the case with the entire financial services industry (btw, this coming from a fiscally conservative Republican.)\n\nI watched the Andrew Cahr interview from a few years back, and it made my skin crawl. Here is a highly intelligent man, with a keen understanding of human nature, willing to capitalize on his skills with business practices designed to prey on the weakest attributes of our free market society. And interestingly (actually convenient) his vision that resulted in his huge financial gain fell short of predicting the damage that credit crises would eventually do to our economy.\n\nBut Mr Cahr, and the many others like him, are certainly not the only culprits. Your &quot;deer in the headlight&quot; interviewees, seemingly situating themselves as victims on this show, and the millions of others like them with a similar attitude, obviously contributed to this mess as well. This is the result of their inability to responsibly manage something as basic as a household budget. They always and conveniently put a lot of effort into the spending side, but too little effort (often avoiding) the budgeting side. I\'ve had credit cards for two decades, and high interest rates and predatory practices have always been there – Mr Cahr helped introduce them into the industry almost three decades ago.\n\nAnd at the end of the day, both sides will want (and will maybe need) some sort of bailout that will amount to spending billions of mine and my children’s tax dollars.\n\nFinally I’m curious: At what point do we call both of these what they are: UNPATRIOTIC. The existence of both predatory lenders and irresponsible consumers is severely damaging our economy, so I think unpatriotic fits well as a label. Their behavior has put the economy in a state where those of us who were responsible don’t know where to turn with our investments, as every opportunity looks bad.\n\nI don’t want to sound mean-spirited, but if there ever is a movement in this country that can help propagate the stigmatism of irresponsible financial behavior being unpatriotic, please let me know – I would like to join it.\n","pt":"Nov 28, 2009 07:59"},{"nm":"Andrew Lower","rs":"0","ms":"The system of credit cards, high interest rates, low income jobs and your health care system in America ultimately robbes and destroys working peoples lifes. Credit apon credit. &quot;The american way&quot; one guy said America has lost its way. These banks and the people who run it have blood on there hands and get away with it time after time. Government doesnt run the country, banks and big business rule supreme. Governments are like a puppet show. No one sees the hands who run the show.","pt":"Nov 28, 2009 05:38"},{"nm":"Lucille Rogers","rs":"0","ms":"Been there, done that...I\'ve gotten myself into major credit card debt but got help from a debt consolidation company.  Paying it all off gave me such a great feeling of accomplishment that I\'ll never go there again.  Now I check my credit card (1) statement and my bank accounts every day to keep track of what\'s happening and that\'s an easy way to see what the &quot;bad guys&quot; are up to.  Everyone should do that and if they did, they will learn what\'s happening and how to control their expenditures.  Too many people don\'t check daily but wait until the statements come in; by that time it may be too late.  Watching the statements being created is a valuable education.  Your program was extremely well done and I found myself talking to it.  I think teaching seniors in high school the basics of credit and personal finance should be required.","pt":"Nov 28, 2009 03:07"},{"nm":"David Jemeyson","rs":"0","ms":"Well done piece. I have been &quot;free&quot; as some people are alluding to in their comments for some time. I am so appalled at the economic slavery, it seems so &quot;cheap&quot; of bankers to prey on the weak. Is it that much of human nature to prey on folks? Can we do things a more mature, refined way? David Jemeyson","pt":"Nov 28, 2009 03:01"},{"nm":"Christopher Bayne","rs":"0","ms":"  I just finished reading this interview and I for the life of me cannot understand why is it the Congress continues to give into big business interests.  These interests are not individual groups of taxpayers but, moneyed interests tied especially to the political interests.\n\n  I don’t know whether to feel for individuals who had signed up for and were taken advantage of by sub-prime mortgages or exploitive credit card offerings. \n\n  Attorneys get bad names especially from individuals in the real estate industry but, if the government doesn’t have a consumer protection agency looking out for citizens.  Then citizens should even if they have to pay an attorney to protect their rights should hire one.  In John Grisham’s recent book, “The Innocent Man” he recommends hiring an attorney as opposed to getting a public defender to represent you in a capital case.  The reason for this is that attorney rates aren’t negotiated by the jurisdiction prosecuting you as the individual and therefore isn’t beholden to the prosecutor(s) handling the case.\n","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 23:19"},{"nm":"Marilyn","rs":"0","ms":"I never seen so many self rightous people in my life. They think they going to throw the hot potato on all the card holders. Who had all  the power to let all this happen in the first. Capitalist creates more than stealing from you. The real sociallst is the corporations. Ill take the responsibility forgeting how many sick neurotic there is ,who has\'t gone thru it. A lot stuck in the two year stage,without any morality at all!","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 17:15"},{"nm":"MM","rs":"0","ms":"Time for campaign finance reform.  ","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 14:26"},{"nm":"Irma","rs":"0","ms":"My husband and I have always lived within their means. I found the piece infuriating that the credit card companys did everything they could to make money in the 8 months it took congress to pass the bill. They raised our credit card rates as well but we paid them off and just don\'t use them. We use cash as much as possible. It\'s about being responsible. Those payday loan companies are worse then loan sharks. When the economy was booming, many of my friends and aquaintances were refinancing, buying cars, buying homes that were way out of their price range. We didn\'t fall into that trap. We didn\'t want a huge mortgage payment and fortunately, we are both still employed. Consumers got carried away not just the banking and lending industry. Yes their are changes that need to be made but people need to take responsibilty for their actions. ","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 14:07"},{"nm":"LS","rs":"0","ms":" I decided to get rid of all my credit cards but carry very little cash -- because of theft and that includes the banks as well as purse snatchers and other robbers...\n This leads to a lack of being able to buy certain things.  Some stores have not upgraded to the electronic check systems and will not take a check for certain items such as gift cards.\n In order to get around all of the barriers I have to go to my credit union, take out the cash I need and hurry to the store.  So how do you get around these bankster thieves?  It is as hard as refusing to buy things that are made in China.  You go without some things.... not always a bad deal either since I have learned that I really CAN go without many things and still do very well.  LOL.\n ","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 13:49"},{"nm":"FM","rs":"0","ms":"The fact that everyone - Fed, Congress, and Administration - refuses to lock down interest rates charged to the poorest people, illustrates that they are all aligned in the bankster camp.  Once you grasp this, look even deeper, to where this &quot;money&quot; that is lent comes from.  You will find that it is backed by virtually nothing.  Money is being created out of air, and people are paying interest, virtualy all of it being usury (by definition), on money created out of air!  An absolutely stunning reality that deserves far more attention and focus than this one, very well produced snapshot.  Keep digging and educate all who will listen.  In the words of Economist John Galbraith, &quot;The study of money, above all other fields in economics, is one in which complexity is used to disguise truth or to evade truth, not to reveal it. The process by which banks creates money is so simple that the mind is repelled.”","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 13:21"},{"nm":"only4u","rs":"0","ms":"thanks frontline\n\nso sorry for everyone to fall in this credit-card trap.\n\nwalks a big capitalist along the beach, sees a nono buy 2 drinks from little shop, sells one\non the way back to somebody then enjoice the drink under a tree. capitalist go to him, smils and\nsay, you stupit. why? you buy 2 drinks sell 2 drinks make profit go back reinvest bay 3 sell 3 then\nmore more more. and then?.. then later you make drink- shop make profit. and then? you stupit make\n2 little shop. and then? save and invest, open restaurant. and then? oh you stupit save and invest\nagain open 2 restaurant later a big hotel. and then? you the biggerst stupit i ever met, then you let others work and you have freetime for ever and can injoy the beach... says the stupite way waste my\nbest years in life is what i am doing right now. old capitalist dont understand. thinks can not help stupits... and he is right...    ","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 13:09"},{"nm":"James Manista","rs":"0","ms":"Hearing bankers defend their practices with such careless disregard of the actual outcome for users, I suggest the term &quot;econopaths.&quot;  How could someone say his gouging of the poor at payday loan agencies was not predatory simply because he had posted the rates of their usury and forced no one at gunpoint to sign his agreements. Hiding behind the boilerplate flimflam of their impenetrable contracts (which they caution &quot;everyone should read&quot; but knowing in their hearts &quot;few do&quot;) they are indistinguishable from the Enron swindlers or Bernie Madoff who no doubt console themselves, &quot;They were fools to believe profits would always grow, property prices will always go up, no investor could be this good.&quot; ","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 12:05"},{"nm":"Ken Wells","rs":"0","ms":"A smug, one-sided report that Michael Moore would be proud of.  Is no one responsible for managing their finances anymore?","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 10:17"},{"nm":"Brian P. Finan","rs":"0","ms":"I actually agree with the banks and credit card companies. If you are going to borrow money, you should know the late fees, interest, and penalties,& a probable ( Job Lay Off ),to which may result in a higher pay back situation.  Also, as far as high interest rates in a free market, no problem look at the percentage mark up of products bought at many retail outlets, Buy a pair of shoes that may cost a retail outlet $5 to $8, and you pay $50 to $60, or more for the same pair of shoes???  What is the difference?  When you get a loan it is sort of like buying money that you do not have. If you think it\'s unfair do without whatever your loan is for untill you can pay cash for it. That\'s the problem with people they need it right now & real fast.      Brian","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 06:37"},{"nm":"Kent Pitman","rs":"0","ms":"Excellent program.  I was a little sad that when the person was talking about how &quot;experience&quot; had shown them that people want their big payments paid first, someone didn\'t ask &quot;Was that experience before or after overdraft fees were added?&quot;  I\'ll bet that people said &quot;pay the big amount first&quot; long ago when they feared that other payments would bounce; but once the rules changed so they wouldn\'t bounce, the order can\'t affect the consumer, it can only help the bank make money.  Simple changes that would help a lot:  (1) Require credit card companies to obtain affirmative consent to overdraw.  We all have credit limits, but apparently those are not limits any more.  (2) Require that the precise nature of all &quot;fees&quot; be spelled out including showing their annual percentage cost.  (3) Forbid any shift of monthly payment due date without affirmative customer request or consent to that specific act.  (4) Cap interest rates at 25% nationally and restore laws against usury.  (5) Stop approving bank mergers. There are already too few banks and this means too little competition.  The big banks are big enough.  We need more banks with more competition, not bigger banks with little or no competition.","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 04:51"},{"nm":"RJ","rs":"0","ms":"  I personally feel that the people who take out credit cards and run them up to the the limit and keep barrowing should get what they deserve. I learned right out of high shool with in a couple of months how easy it is to get sucked into debt by credit cards. I never owed more then a couple of hundred dollars at any one time but that was enough for me. Both my wife and I are debt free and own our own home paid for. Its not much but it is home. We have no other bills. Yet today we can not even get a loan because we owe no one. Then everyone who has all these debts feel that I should help them because they could not see the hand writting on the wall. You charge then pay your bill.\n\nRJ","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 03:18"},{"nm":"JerryinPHX","rs":"0","ms":"After years of paying more than the mimimum balance due and also never late, three credit card companies just raised my interest rates to over 25% for no good reason other than a &quot;tight economy&quot;. I got mad and decided to fight them... by not making any more payments. Sure it will damage my credit but who cares !!  I\'ll just use cash, and after a year or two negotiate a cash settlement by paying less than 50% of what is owed. If Banks try to screw with me and treat me unfairly, I can turn into the rabid junkyard dog that takes a big bite out of THEIR \nButts!!\n         JerryinPHX","pt":"Nov 27, 2009 00:50"},{"nm":"John O","rs":"0","ms":"I too received the CitiBank letter, offering to continue my card at the &quot;new&quot; interest rate of 22+% (from the current 12.99). I don\'t know if they connect me, and this account (both of which I hve had for \>5 yrs, never missing a payment) to my mortgage account with them in another state, or not, but I will be canceling both of these accounts. I\'ll also not do business with them or any of their other operations as long as I live. \n\nI\'ll do the same with any bank that tries to retroactively re-write our &quot;deal&quot;.\n\nI also have no tolerance for the politicians, like Dodd and Obama who claim to be Democrats, what was the working class party, now a bunch of hypocrites. Vota ALL incumbents out.  ","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 22:20"},{"nm":"Tim Sloane","rs":"0","ms":"A balanced report would have at least tried to present the cause of these problems, which includes a very  real cost associated with non-payment risk, since those who most need a loan are most likely to be unable to repay the loan.  More importantly, Frontline should have discussed the profit motive which is fundemental to for-profit institutions such as Bank of America and others.  \n\nYour web site identifies that a credit union may be a better option (as are many community banks), and yet the report failed to ask why any rational person would bank with a for-profit bank that can only earn a profit from it\'s customers!  I\'d rather be a stock holder that profits from the customer\'s poor  choice of banks.\n","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 18:38"},{"nm":"Barb","rs":"0","ms":"Tuesday (11/24) I watched the program. Last night (11/25) I saw &quot;Otello&quot; at SF Opera. Iago singing his Credo is so much more terrifying than Iago in the play. Worse, every minute of him reminded me of the bankers on the program and the lovely female lawyer making excuses for them. The question remains: How much more gluttonous evil can we stand and do &quot;we&quot; have anything to say about it. I keep arguing my support of and sympathy for the president but why do the bankers who seem to represent everything else rotten get bailed indefinitely?","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 16:24"},{"nm":"G T Buckley","rs":"0","ms":"Why run to Congress when you choose not to read, add, and subtract; and choose to spend money you don\'t have? Congress has better things to do.\n","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 14:53"},{"nm":"stanley capela","rs":"0","ms":"I thought the Card Game episode was without question one of your best. The insight that was offered clearly educates the public on an issue that is not discussed in great detail. Further it re-enforces the major problem with our country. If you have the money you pretty much dictate the legislation. Again, the episode was clear, concise, objective and thought provoking. Well done!","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 11:42"},{"nm":"Subprime Nation","rs":"0","ms":"Lenders could not take advantage of borrowers if borrowers did not allow it.  I really hate to see &quot;reform&quot; in credit card laws- if the lenders can\'t make a buck off the stupid people then the lenders will be trying to make a buck off those of use who use credit cards but never pay interest and never pay fees.  I liked credit cards just the way they were- free short-term loans.  As with everything else in this screwed-up economy, those of us who handled our finances responsibly are going to take the hit.  The idiots get rewarded.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 11:13"},{"nm":"Peter Sisco","rs":"0","ms":" My biggest complaint is the way the banks ae both forceing things like automatic overdraft protection on usthen chargeing us over draft fees. A perfec example of how they screw people over with the hi-lo transaction is fruaduelant as well. Take for example :\n       You go to a gas station and by $10.00 and gas and a $1.21 which comes to $11.21 , right. Now if you have &quot; keep the change&quot; from someone like bank of america it is actually $12.00 , and if you have a new acount and/or not use to rounding up your check book this by itself wll cost you hundreds of dollars. I know this for a fact because when I was working keep the change was great. I always had enough money to forget about 9 or 10 dollars in change tha would transfer from my checking to savings. therefore I had always used a weekly balance ledger for my checking. Every friday my ledger would reset with my balance after depositing my paycheck. When I became unemployed my income was cut by more than half. Now the overrafts sarted happing because I was tightly balancing my book but for a month kept forgetting about the keep the change transfers. So even tho the money to cover every transaction WAS in bank the bank kept charging me overdraft fees which in a months time actaly cost me a whole months income.But as I said if you were to retracehe money it was all there. Mos of it was in the checking but a samll portion was in the savings, of the same bank, because of the &quot;keep the change&quot;. And th hi -lo that I do not want and did not ask for , forced multiple overdraft charges on me. HOW? Simple, I like coffee. So I woul spend a dollar here ad a dollar there and after 9 or 10 dollars was tranfered to savings I wind up with 7 or 8 $35.00 overdrafts. do the math , my 9 dollars in coffe because of this scheme actually cost $9.00 plus $280.00 in over draft fees. \n   I have pretty much solved the issue now though. Every week as soon as money is deposited in my account  withdraw it. The bank can no longer screw me over with their fees that they set up to fall on me , nor can they use my money to make money in any invetments. Yeah sure it a small wn for me but if every american waso do what I do the the banks would be forced to start bowing to us , The Little People. It\'s the same with credit cards. If the majority of people were to stop using their credit cards and payed their bills off in full for one month the credit card industry would literally collapse. That would really teach the banks a lesson.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 10:58"},{"nm":"Slave to the banking industry.","rs":"0","ms":"Bill Strunk thinks &quot;its the consumers responsibility to keep up with his checkbook&quot;. That is easy to say. But, when you make a payroll deposit on a friday  after two pm, do not expect your money to be available for four to five days. If you have been forced into a position of living from paycheck to paycheck that could be a fee generating problem. How can a person be expected to keep up with his checkbook when the banks are trying every way they can to profit, by way of fees, from the people who can least afford these fees. It is funny how a withdraw can be made and credited instantly and a deposit takes days to credit to an account. BB&T recently reported a fourth quarter 2008 income from fees of $766 million. During that same quarter they reported a profit of only $305 million. That should say something. Take away their fees and you take their ability to sustain their buisness.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 10:32"},{"nm":"Gerry","rs":"0","ms":"Most of the comments in this section deal with symptoms rather than the cause.  The causes are excessive bank rates plus a consumer group into conspicuous consumption. We need to educate our children before they become trapped into a cycle of borrowing and spending.  Kids need financial literacy taught in their schools.  The road blocks to teaching financial literacy concepts are that many teachers are not comfortable with the topic, teachers have a very crowded teaching schedule for mandated subjects and that our children are not taught how to think.  The questions kids should ask is not how do I write a check but rather should I write a check?  A single regulatory authority that protects consumers plus a well thought out national strategy for learning financial literacy basics will help resolve the critical issues related to irresponsible lending practices and irrational buying.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 10:12"},{"nm":"Alyssan Stickney","rs":"0","ms":"I am not surprised that the people who can least afford it pay the most.It is nothing new. Slavery is very much alive after thousands of years. The few who ride on the backs of the masses enslaved to banking have known exactly how they oppress and they smile. \nI was one of the first to lose everything. My family is resourceful enough to survive and not continue to be enslaved. We use currency only when it is absolutely necessary, we have no credit, we own nothing other than our basic necessaties and this makes us very powerful.\nThe way to take back our rights and be a free people is to cripple the banks that enslaved us. When we as a people can barter for goods it will render the banks absolutely powerless. \nIt has already started. An economy that is worth billions and the banks receive nothing. A shadow economy, a black market that thrives.\nMy heart breaks every time I hear about couples committing suicide after losing jobs, then homes and possessions. \nKind of like slaves that have been emancipated only to return to their masters because it is the only life they know.\nI am free, My family is free. And very much alive and growing.\nThe eyes of the people are opened with programs like PBS Frontline. Now we can begin to free ourselves.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 08:30"},{"nm":"George Johnson","rs":"0","ms":"Very simple solution to the price gouging and scam fees that was mentioned on FARK.\n\nEliminate all &quot;Overdraft Fees&quot;, in fact eliminate all banking fees.\nIf there are insufficient funds in a account, then it becomes an &quot;AUTOMATIC LOAN&quot; (subject to all regulations of a loan in regards to the time period of the loan itself).  All debit additions to this AUTOMATIC LOAN are not separate from the original loan and are still under reasonable regulated loan rates and repayment time period interest rates.\n\nAlso make it 100% illegal (to the point of nullifying the bank\'s legal charter to operate at all and the imprisonment of the banking executives that allow these practices for Criminal Fraud) to reorder banking transactions at any time to gain &quot;easy money&quot; for the bank.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 05:19"},{"nm":"Peter","rs":"0","ms":"I believe the argument that because interest rates are at historical lows, that credit card rates should be similar is very misleading and incorrect.  Everyone must remember that credit cards are unsecured debt- debt not backed by any real assets.  That is why home loan mortgages are at historic lows because they are secured with real property.  Banks take on huge risk by lending money to consumers via credit cards.  \n\nCredit cards are to be used for convenience, safety, and temporary borrowing for purchases.  If consumers use them wisely, they are an effective tool.  Consumers must also be held accountable and responsible for their actions as well.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 04:19"},{"nm":"Jon Murphy","rs":"0","ms":"In the fifties Chase Manhattan had a credit card, but they sold it to UniCard as they were losing money at a 6% interest rate (in a 3% climate)and the Chairman, George Champion, refused to associate his bank with a &quot;usurous&quot; rate the about 12% that they calculated was needed. \n\nThe misunderstanding on credit card &quot;costs&quot; is that they are called interest. A part of the cost to the consumer is the loan, but there is also the transaction cost. Admittedly the transaction cost is far lower now with direct electronic entry, rather than the &quot;key punching&quot; of each transaction into IBM cards for computer entry that I used to watch - but the principle is the same. The cost to process $1.50 for a cup of coffee (I go to WaWa, not Starbucks) is the same as to process a $1,500 purchase, but the interest income is quite different. \n\nSo let us look at fairness from the other end, should the person who does one transaction of $1,500 be paying a subsidy to the coffee addict who buys 1000 cups of coffee a month on his card, each a separate transaction involving processing cost? \n\nThe solution is to charge a transaction fee for each purchase, and to charge interest only on the actual balance. I know of few people who object to paying more for a bottle of milk at a convenience store than at the supermarket, they know they are paying for the convenience of being able to make a small purchase quickly at any hour. The corellary benefit to this rule would be saving those of us who carry a bit of cash in our pockets from waiting in line behind the credit card coffee buyers. \n\nI don\'t disagree that many card companies and banks abuse the use of fees, and also disguise them. I find that reprehensible. One thing not mentioned in the Frontline piece, at least as of my late entry into it, is the late fees for &quot;minimum payments&quot; that don\'t relate to the balance. I have two credit cards, both with the same mutual savings bank, and I pay ahead. If my minimum payment is $30 I send them $100 (I hate to do bookkeeping). That is carried over to my next bill, so my minimum is zero. That way I can budget my cards without having to come up with a last minute payment. \n\nMost cards don\'t do what I just described, but they should. Find one that does. \n\nI have some sympathy with the banks and card companies, but not much. They are, as the Frontline piece implied, abusing the consumer through excess fees on such things as late payments. But at the same time the lazy consumer is running up the bank\'s costs by using the card for multiple small transactions - and that cost must be covered somewhere. The use of transaction fees, stated up front, might be a better way. Charge me a quarter every time I use my card, I\'m willing to pay it when making a large purchase, or when I\'ve no cash in my pocket and the ATM is a mile away. Too many of us regard a credit card as a cost free transaction.\n\nI am reminded of two different series of TV commercials in the Sixties. One from CitiBank (now CitiGroup) and the other from Chase Manhattan (after they bought their charge plan back from UniCard). The Citi commercials showed a pretty young lady dancing down the street and looking into store windows. She stopped every time she saw something she liked and bought it with her CitiCard. The Chase commercials showed a couple in need of a new refridgerator and debating on whether they could afford the better model. The Citi theme was &quot;use our card to buy what your heart desires&quot;, the Chase theme was &quot;use our card to buy the better long term investment&quot;. \n\nAnd that is where I fault the banks and other lenders, the marketing of credit has created a culture of borrowing for ordinary expenses - and they are now paying the price for that, but are also charging us for it. Yet I must also fault the consumer for being that CitiBank lady in the commercial, the foolish consumer - and also for spending all of our money on those cups of coffee. \n\nTo explain that last, when you use your credit card for that cup of coffee there is some time taken on the general &quot;telephone lines&quot; to contact the bank\'s computer, some time on that computer to process the transaction, then more time on the lines to respond. It is the same time whether you are buying a plasma TV or a cup of coffee - and it adds up to an overall cost that must be payed by all. \n\nBest, Jon","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 04:06"},{"nm":"CBN","rs":"0","ms":"I thought Frontline did an exquisite job at laying out the history and background of predatory credit card practices.  However, they did miss one recent particularly onerous example by Chase.  A few months ago Chase increased minimum payment amounts from 2% to %5 on thousands of card holders who were given low balance transfer rates @ 3.9% to 5.9% for the life of the balance.  I was one.  I had a payment of $150, never late, which increased to $385. Of course if you miss this payment it goes to 30%.  To avoid the payment increase cardholders were blackmailed into accepting an 8.99% rate for 5 years, then the normal high variable rate. Class action suits are certainly pending, but for the moment what choice was there but to accept the rate change.  I did file an Office of the Comptroller complaint.  After a couple of months, Chase called me and offered a 2% rate for 5 years if I close the account, which was more than fine with me.  Once paid I will never come close to Chase for the rest of my days, and will tell this story for the same. I guess customers just become disposable at some point.  For those waiving the personal responsibility flag here I would say quit blaming the victim in cases where the banks are clearly to blame for the predatory practices illuminated in the show.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 03:14"},{"nm":"Ken","rs":"0","ms":"If even just half of the card holders who are paying-down a balance paid off their card balance on January 1, or July 4 or some other &quot;special&quot; day, even if it meant borrowing from another non-card source, the card companies would get the message. A side effect of that also might be to get a certain percentage of those card holders to keep on paying each month\'s card purchases in full. That would change the industry.\n\nOf course to make it stick, we have to sweep out the entire US Congress, and vote-in a new bunch with TERM LIMITS!","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 02:53"},{"nm":"samri b ","rs":"0","ms":"I think this is an evil world full of wolves.... live within your means! I don\'t have a house with mortgage, no cars with fees and gas prises, no credit cards with interest rates. Just a debit card,I don\'t even know where it\'s at. :D \nchao- ","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 02:44"},{"nm":"StandUP_More","rs":"0","ms":"What are solutions for this mess?  \n\nBanks are raising interest rates and cutting down on the max. available balance in half, to increase and attach additional fees for profit (this is what they call profit?  This is the definition of capitalism at work? This is what market will correct itself? that VP should be fired and that woman, I don\'t want to go there)  Making unaffordable citizens to pay more fees with outrageous interest rates.  Bankers call that profit?  At the end, both losses, people and banks.  Look what is going on right now? More loss of jobs more crimes, more class divisions.  There must be a better way of doing honest business for profit!\n\nCredit should be caped to 50% above the value of the original purchase and no more.  No compound interest after 50% increase of the original value of the loan!  \n\nPeople should come together for solutions, to find loop holes that Credit Card Bankers did not thought about (like what Bankers are finding loop holes to go around FED\'s regulations, see that exCEO\'s house?) and pay only what we owe and some nominal percentage for their services. (suggestion: current FED\'s interest rate + 50% of the original loan value?).  I feel for the guy who lost the job and had to declare bankruptcy.\n\nThere must be a way!  Banks are doing it and as you can see, they are not smarter than rest of us as you think! Who bail them out?\n\nGovernment should of used TARP funds for the people with credit balances to payoff all U.S. citizens bed credit card debts to those banks.  This way, eventually will help to solve those troubled assets that Banks are holding and also help those in need.  Banks will get average of 20% return on those bad debts.  That\'s much better ROI than what they have now!\n\nBanks are already talking about increasing their incentive programs + amount of bonuses, they think they are doing better because of their better management practices.  Cutting Jobs to make company profitable, anybody can do that! \n\nBig Banks are trouble ... global banks are more trouble ... the salary and comp. should be realigned with rest of the midsized businesses.  No more millions of $ for salary.  I don\'t care who you are.\n\nCollective minds of many citizens must pull together and make ideas that work for the hard working citizens.  This should start locally ... regionally ... nationally.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 02:01"},{"nm":"Ray Castillo","rs":"0","ms":"As a former credit card user I was able to max out two credit cards to a total of about $18,000 and went delinquent on payments. The banks and collectors harassed me for about a couple of years and after keeping the sharks at bay they finally gave and settled for the settlement of only $6,000 for both cards. And til this day I am proud for getting over on the system. Say no to credit it\'s like a drug or worse ALCOHOL.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 01:32"},{"nm":"Patrice Peyret","rs":"0","ms":"Creativity at the disservice of consumers.... You have to admire how inventive some of these bankers and banking consultants are. My favorite part: the &quot;courtesy fees&quot;, like in &quot;we did you the courtesy of advancing $7 for your pizza last night, now you owe us $35.&quot; \nThey admitted candidly that they could not possibly call it an interest on a short term loan, because the Truth In Lending Act would have forced them to display the corresponding annual interest rate of ....24,000%. After all, it is possible to be creative, candid and intellectually dishonest, all at the same time.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 01:30"},{"nm":"SanJose Mike","rs":"0","ms":"While I do agree that the &quot;contracts&quot; sent to consumers who have credit and debit card accounts with banks are absurdly complex and confusing, I still stand by the fact that &quot;late charges, high interest rates, etc.&quot; are VOLUNTARILY accepted by the customer. \n\nThe simple answer for most of those who are in this rut is to pay off their debt each month totally and never be late even a day. If they cannot do this, the answer is simply to tear up their cards (yes, debit cards too) and go to a checkbook or cash personal economy. This will force them to do what they need to do: Go on a budget where every dollar is allocated before each month starts and never go over that allocation. \n\nWe have spent ourselves into this. We simply cannot afford to spend more than we have. What ever happened to saving an emergency fund? \n\nIt\'s fun for liberals to blame banks for &quot;predatory&quot; practices. But the buck stops here...these charges and penalties are entirely voluntary. You do NOT have to pay them if you don\'t wish to. \n\nsanjosemike ","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 01:15"},{"nm":"Nigel","rs":"0","ms":"I did enjoy watching this episode of Frontline.  However, I would have enjoyed it even more had the reporters provided some discussion on consumer responsibility. Perhaps they should do a show about citizens, such as myself, who happens to live credit card debt free and live within our means.  I am sure there are people out there who would like to know how we manage to live that way.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 00:35"},{"nm":"Christopher Walls","rs":"0","ms":"Forget about government help,help yourself by staying out of debt. Republicans and Democrats are bought and paid for. And the Credit Card Act. that was just passed will do very little. Just like this so called Health Care reform without a public-option that they plan to pass will do very little. I voted for George Bush when he was in there and I voted for Obama for change and so far I\'ve seen very little, no I change that I have seen allot I have seen the working man like myself get nothing and Wall Street rich bankers get everything. I something will change soon because me and my family are drowning. ","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 00:31"},{"nm":"d winthrop","rs":"0","ms":"I thought the congress represented the people? A movement is needed to eliminate lobbyist from usurping\ncongress. I am down to one credit card w/ a balance and once that is paid off ($354.00 for a balance\ntransfer) I don\'t plan to use them w/ the exception of small purchaces that I can pay off monthly.I agree\nw/ an earlier poster that TARP funds should not have been used to bail out the banks who went on to make obscene profits. Market forces should have prevailed. Thanks to all the shenanigans credit card issuers\nhave pulled, profits will continue to fall thanks to more people using cards less and less.","pt":"Nov 26, 2009 00:07"},{"nm":"T Rodyant","rs":"0","ms":"Wow, This is amazing reports. The banks always do their predatory lending all the times and they never told about the fees. There is no where the consumers can complaint about this and there is no way consumer can get any protection from the predatory practices. The fees are hidden behind the consumers and the banks enjoy them as their income, the bigger the bank, the more suffer the consumers feel. Stop this. The banks must disclose all the fees and stop draft over debit card or credit card. Will the predators let alive meanwhile they sucks the live of the poor to increase their wealth..?? Stop Predatory Lending. Let build the economy","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 22:54"},{"nm":"kim Olson","rs":"0","ms":"GREAT IDEA-SEND THIS TO AS MANY PEOPLE AS YOU CAN-the politicians will always be years behind the banks-the ONLY way to protect yourself and your family/friends is to help them stay informed.  Frontline has done a great job of making a complex subject easy to understand. INFORMATION IS POWER-spread the word.  ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 22:21"},{"nm":"Angela in Minneapolis","rs":"0","ms":"While I am normally very pleased with the programs Frontline has to offer, I was very disappointed with this one. \nThe responsibility of the consumer is to read and understand contracts that they are signing. Signing a contract with an open ended APR is very dangerous and should be considered with the utmost diligence. If it is too much of a risk, simply do not enter into that contract. It is a CHOICE as a consumer--these companies are not forcing anyone to enter into a credit card agreement. If you live within your means, you do not need credit. \nOf course credit card companies will charge higher rates to riskier borrowers. Credit card companies do not operate out of the goodness of their hearts so that people can live outside of their means. They are in it for profit, like any business. Why is that wrong.\nThe only practices that are unjust are retroactively applying APR to former balances, and not disclosing information to customers. Other than that, consumers need to develop some personal responsibility and not rely on the government to resolve the consequences of their decisions. \nI am a bit surprised that Frontline did not cover credit unions, which do not tend to have such &quot;unfair&quot; practices and cap their own APR\'s at 18%.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 21:46"},{"nm":"Tbrown","rs":"0","ms":"Although their needs to be more controls on what the banking industry can do in regards to changing rates, I heard very little about personal responsibility in this piece. When will the American public stand up and take accountability for their actions versus blaming someone else? Americans have been living beyond their means for years and driving themselves further in debt, when a bad economy hits, they can\'t pay up, it doesn\'t matter if rates stay the same or not, these people couldn\'t pay. This same thread runs through the current health care debate. Over 50% of Americans are not diligent in taking care of their health, they over eat, don\'t exercise and smoke, so now they want the government to pay for their health care. Let\'s start by stepping away from the table and start exercising before we expect big brother to take care of us. Stand up and take accountability for your actions America! ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 21:38"},{"nm":"Bruce Griggs","rs":"0","ms":"At the age of 61 I am old enough to remember when California usury law prohibited anybody from charging anyone over 10% interest on anything.  What happened to that? Where have all the statesmen gone?  The real issue is morality.  Even the Mosaic law of 3,000 years ago prohibited such parasitic practice as abusive interest and gleanings were to be left for the poor.  Upon such compassionate law was western civilization, and the United States based. When Israel followed the principles of its laws, it prospered.  When it didn\'t, the nation failed.  It is a wonder that we have traveled so far backward as a society. \n\nThe final consequence of Greed is annihilation of the market it feeds upon, and the parasite dies with the host.  Of course by then the CEO and the Board will have moved on to structure another larger parasitic organism to feed on someone elsewhere.  This process cannot be corrected without repairing the collective human heart condition. And this won\'t happen by cranking children through Universities with the sole aim to create fortunes, or by inculcating in them a faith based on security through wealth.  Social responsibility must be the basis of the culture itself.  God through Moses commanded it, Jesus clarified it, Paul further explained it, and many lived it. As Americans we have forgotten it.   Without a strong enough degree of selflessness, societal collapse occurs.  \n\nRead 2 Timothy 3:1-5  As a nation we seem to be living that prophecy today. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 21:22"},{"nm":"DL","rs":"0","ms":"I thought the show was very good but ...\n\nSo little discussion in the show about &quot;personal responsibility&quot; it is kind of scary.  Clearly there were practices by the card companies that sound unfair, but the examples focus almost always on people tripped up by those practices rather than the more common experience of just not managing ones money effectively.  Not everyone who ended up paying &quot;excessive&quot; fees got cancer or was unfortunately laid off.  Not everyone who ended up paying excessive fees was tripped up by the unfair practices.  The vast majority were in neither of those camps.  Yet the show would have us believe that they were the majority.\n\nLikewise, the number of self-serving politicians who claim to have seen this ahead of time but that their own colleagues were overly influenced by the banking lobby (Chris Dodd being the most prominent of the former, fingerpointing types on the show) demonstrated a lack of balance by the producers and a lack of a desire to do critical questioning of the interview subjects.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 21:07"},{"nm":"Tariq","rs":"0","ms":"This program is way too quick to be blame the credit card industry. We are adults and shouldn\'t require regulation. One of the only laws that should be forced is to not allow the credit card companies to take a person to court for delinquency. And the American public should be told that they do not need to pay (with the only consequence being a lower credit score). This would help to stop the credit industry from lending to low income / high risk individuals. I happen to know many people (sadly including relatives) who buy things that are just not needed and then complain that in order to make ends meet they need credit. The American public needs to take responsibility for their own actions. We need to stop blaming the banks for our greedy need to have anything we want on demand. By the way, the banks should have been let to fail too; they also need to take responsibility for their own actions.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 20:57"},{"nm":"Jake","rs":"0","ms":"Take responsibility for your own actions and don\'t blame others.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 20:46"},{"nm":"Suze","rs":"0","ms":"Financial institutions have consumers where the institutions want  them out of fear and shame. Don\'t let anyone know you\'re in debt. Don\'t fight back because they might exact even stricter punishment. I am no longer afraid and no longer ashamed. Just angry. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 20:42"},{"nm":"hal sherman","rs":"0","ms":"CASH IS STILL KING!!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 20:05"},{"nm":"Joseph ","rs":"0","ms":"I received the same letter in the mail from my last credit card with a $5000 balance.  It even looked like the same font as the one they aired in the show.  My balance is with CitiBank.  I did read the whole letter and they do offer you an opt out options which will close your account and allow you to pay back the balance at your current rate.  I have a few more weeks to decide.  After watching this program I am certain i will tell CitiBank thank you very much, its been swell doing business with you but I think our relationship is over I OPT OUT.  Until we do decide we dont need them, the credit card companys will never decide they need us.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 19:28"},{"nm":"Doug Baker","rs":"0","ms":"It\'s about time the American pubic catch up with these thieving crooks who are under the guide of legitimate businesses. There should be greater measures in place to ensure that people who receive credit get it but in a manner which fits into their present level of income and ability to pay.  I was one of those college kids who was lured into two credit cards from one of the &quot;big companies&quot; and just this year managed to pay off the debt accrued from that experience after 20+ years!  To bail these companies out makes me sick!  Tea party anyone?       ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 19:14"},{"nm":"D.G.","rs":"0","ms":"Can someone please remind me again why credit cards are necessary? And why legislation to protect people from their own over consumption is necessary? Has it become impossible for the average American to pay as they go, or  forbid, live with less? Is the economy now completely addicted to consumer credit (if so we\'re in serious trouble) with no recovery possible? Someday the corporate funded congress/senate will have to get down to business and spend a little time on things that matter (climate destabilization, energy, water, you know, trivial stuff like that). I think those days are fast approaching and this madness of credit necessity will be viewed as some kind of cruel joke. Shall we start laughing now?","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 18:58"},{"nm":"Doug","rs":"0","ms":"I\'m sorry, but the fact is that if you eat more calories than you burn you will gain weight, and if you spend more than you make you will take on debt. These facts don\'t change regardless of the industry or an OBVIOUS predatory practice (read that again in case you missed the word &quot;OBVIOUS&quot;). Stop seeing what you can have and start having what you can afford and these predators will have no prey. Some folks might do better to stop blaming others and take some responsibility. When will Americans wake up and start living within their means? You can\'t depend on government or some other entity to make up for a lack of common sense. It is so simple, and you learned it in grammar school, 2+2=4. Is that so hard?","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 18:33"},{"nm":"Lee","rs":"0","ms":"Very interesting program. I have to say that I can understand both sides of this coin. I can remember back in the 70s and early 80s when people couldn\'t stay in hotels because they didn\'t have a credit card to secure the room. I can remember the days when local stores that accepted only cash, mind u, got robbed on a regular basis. I can remember the days when the same happened to people cashing their checks at the currency exchange. Before we go bashing the banks and credit card companies let\'s not forget the security and payment management systems that they provide to individuals and businesses alike. Shame on the banks for dismissing proper customer service practices in exchange for profits. But keep in mind they had to be fair to whom they offered these products too. We tend to forget about the notorious redlining practices where what dictated whether or not you got credit extended to you was based on where you lived and sometimes the favorable demographic.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 18:32"},{"nm":"Greg Clark","rs":"0","ms":"It seems to me to be a simple solution to this problem, as well as the myriad of other problems created by our corpritocracy, such as climate change, energy independence, health care, etc... Public campaign financeing. When the millons stop flowing from corporate lobbys and start coming from us, who do you think congress will be beholding to? ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 17:28"},{"nm":"Kim Ward","rs":"0","ms":"I find it amazing how little control the federal government has over a system that is so meshed in the basic everyday lives of all American\'s. For this reason alone the Federal government should be rallying aggressively. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 17:05"},{"nm":"Jan Zamorski","rs":"0","ms":"What this program showed me is that this country was,is and will be The Wild West unless there is real big change regarding contributions and term limits for congressman. Than politicians would less play to the tune of Banks, Corporations, Interest Groups and Lobbyists.   ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 17:02"},{"nm":"joan gallardo","rs":"0","ms":"As long as the the level of greed reaches to the point where for credit to exist depends on its profitability so that bank\'s president and few more down the ladder can earn millions a year with crazy bonuses, it will never work well. Washington will never change because politicians\' contributions are the gates to unlimited greed. It\'s funny how these finance industry lobbyists defend the legality of an unregulated credit card industry claiming that free markets will balance out the financial markets. So can anyone tell me why is the government so much in debt after the lending bubble? What did happen to the markets? HYPOCRITES!   ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 16:56"},{"nm":"Dave V","rs":"0","ms":"Credit cards should be made ileagal to start with. Then I also think it\'s time we think of nationalizing the banking system. Doing away with the FED.Our real problem though is simply that our government is owened by the super wealthy people behind the scenes that have no sense of loyalty to this or any other nation.I only hope we as a nation can be brought out of our stupor-made fully aware of this in a broad sense-in time to regain control. and become a truly soverin nation once again.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 16:50"},{"nm":"Edward Miessner","rs":"0","ms":"These banks should not have been bailed out.  When Paulson told Comgress that martial law will ensue if the let the banks fail, Congress should have called the Bush Administration\'s Treasurer\'s bluff on it and DISAPPROVED the TARP.  What are the banks doing now? Sticking it to the American people at both ends: denying credit and jacking up interest rates to make debt service more costly, and speculating in commodities to make the cost of living more expensive.  If left unchecked, these activities by the banks will eventually collapse the nation into a hyperinflationary depression, with the banks, the Government, the States, Cities and Towns, and the population utterly insolvent. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 16:47"},{"nm":"Dan Levin","rs":"0","ms":"I watched the program on PBS last night and I probably shouldn\'t have since it raised my blood pressure sky high. (Do they charge a fee for that, too?)\n\nHow can people lie and deceive and cheat without realizing that they are going to hell? &quot;Free market&quot;? Are they joking? They are just thieves, plain and simple, and should go to jail for fraud. After all, isn\'t a con-game part of the free market?","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 16:43"},{"nm":"jg","rs":"0","ms":"The more I watch these programs the more I realize the level of tiranny and corruption surrounding Washington. Every possible excuse is used for the exploitation of decent hard working people. How a finance industry lobbyist has the hard face to say that consumers prefer credit cards to post charges not as they are received but in amount size leaving the multiple small ones last even if that represents $35 overdraft fee for every charge over the limit? Who is this guy trying to fool?   ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 16:28"},{"nm":"Deadbeat","rs":"0","ms":"You can take &quot;full responsibility&quot; if you want.  If you do you are chumps.  The problem is that over the past 30 years workers have been getting screwed by Capitalism as their growing productivity was taken by the rich as workers wages stayed FLAT.  In order to maintain consumption -- housing, raising transportation cost, child care, health care and increasingly REGRESSIVE tax rates workers BORROWED putting themselves in more debt.\n\nHad workers had more COLLECTIVE power rather than being atomized they would have been able to obtain their FAIR share of the productivity gains in the form of higher wages and their would have been a lesser need to borrow money.\n\nThe system is rigged for the rich and the bankers and to blame yourself is to add insult to injury. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 16:22"},{"nm":"Rich in CO","rs":"0","ms":"Is there a commandment against userious stealing? You betcha! Where do you suppose the saying &quot;Do unto others as you would have them do unto you&quot; came from. Two thousand years ago, a Compassionate Man said &quot;It is easier for a rich man to pass thru the eye of a needle, than to gain the Kingdom of Heaven.&quot; What we have now is capitalism for the poor and socialism for the rich, an unwarranted transfer of wealth from the bottom to the top...and in this country, I\'m sad to say, has become a government of the few, by the few, and for the few. And don\'t judge men who aspire to improve the lot of their fellow citizens, and fall short of promises, for they soon are trumped by the &quot;powers that be&quot;. The very powers that have us and will keep\nus exactly where they will only allow us to be.\n","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 15:57"},{"nm":"Jean","rs":"0","ms":"I wish Frontline would have distinguished between the financial conglomerates like Bank of America, Chase and Wells Fargo and my local bank.  These giants who only do a little banking are the so-called banks that got 70% of the bailout money.  They are the ones who issue the overwhelming majority of credit cards.  They are the ones who drive the bank lobbyists.  They\'re not just &quot;too big to fail&quot;, they are &quot;too big to care&quot;.  My local bank doesn\'t issue credit cards and they were very upfront about their overdraft protection program which I could get out of at any time.  The media and Congress need to recognize that the local banks who didn\'t get us into this mess and who aren\'t the ones gouging their neighbor/customers are in fact the ones holding this economy together right now.  Leave them along and go after the guilty ones.  And people who bank at those giants should stop complaining, close their accounts and move to a local bank or credit union.  That will take care of the problem better than any legislation.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 15:55"},{"nm":"Royden Card","rs":"0","ms":"Why is it when there is a &quot;change in terms&quot; in the economy, the working public cannot also issue a &quot;change of terms?  It is after all our labor they are suckling on. I say we should.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 15:51"},{"nm":"Curt Davis","rs":"0","ms":"I thought the peice was very well done.  As a city manager, I ahd to turn down requests to subordinate HUD funds that were owed for work done on a home.  The credit companies would tell the client that the city denied their loan.  I would have to explain that we did not deny the loan, we simply did not chose to assume the risk.  The credit company was making a profit and they should assume the risk.  If the property was assessed at a level that covered the city\'s exposure, we would approve.  \nAlthough I agree that the company can set the rate, I don\'t se why they should be able to make it retroactive.  My experience ha shown that people who  ind being monitored are peole who are more likly to need monitoring.  Did you think about including how banks use floating to make money in your report.  I find it amazing that in this day and age banks cannot provide instant accounting from ATM machines.  Good job.  I really enjoyed the show.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 15:47"},{"nm":"Michael","rs":"0","ms":"This is why we need Credit Unions. I worked for a credit union for over 28 years and we always worked with our members. We provided great financial services and never tried to take advantage of our members. We were the one that sometimes got the bad treatment and got taken advantage of. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 15:33"},{"nm":"John","rs":"0","ms":"Rep. Barney Frank said it best: credit card companies that increase rates on money consumers already owe is &quot;the most unfair financial transaction I can think of that doesn\'t involve a pistol.&quot; Thank you FRONTLINE for exposing this lineup of crooks in business suits, arrogant and proud of fleecing the country. These predators are at the root of the decline of this country, where the rewards no longer go to those who create wealth, but to those parasites who just shuffle it around. There isn\'t enough contempt in the world for bankers, as a species.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 15:32"},{"nm":"Swiller","rs":"0","ms":"First they bubble increased the price of homes, and I did not speak out—because I had already owned a home;\nThen they changed interest terms overnight on credit card holders, and I did not speak out—because I did not own a credit card;\nThen they came for a bailout, and I did not speak out—because I TRUSTED my elected officials;\nThen they came for me—and there was no one left to speak out for me.\n\nSounds about right, nothing going on in Amerika...move along now or get shot by our police state.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 15:29"},{"nm":"Mello","rs":"0","ms":"It was not a documentary at all, it was a one-sided political speech. Businesses exist for their owners and shareholders, not to fulfill some lefty journalist\'s view of \'fairness\'. If banks and lenders are so unfair, then why doesn\'t everyone open accounts at Eakes\' credit union ? \n\nLook at the net interest margins at the banks and other lenders - it\'s 2 or 3%. Neither CRL or Eakes or CFA and now sadly, Frontline too, ever looks at the cost structure involved to deliver the service - they must think it\'s free. What happens if we take the fees out of the revenue structure?  There\'s no profit left because there are too many loan losses. The only way to make up for it is to do less business with fewer people lending only to 800 credit scores. The end result of the Dodd/Eakes crusade to save 5% of the people from their own absurd behavior will be a return to the late 1940\'s where only the rich and their kin have access to unsecured credit. With no credit in the system the economy will never recover.  ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 14:51"},{"nm":"Roger Phenix","rs":"0","ms":"Bergman takes the viewer on a wonderful quiet tour through the various strangely-constructed reasonings of professional, highly educated, and worldly people who appear to know nothing of the sea within which they swim.  The photography of these interviews is unusually beautiful, the sound pristine, and the structure of the investigative journalist\'s essay is subtly and highly crafted to great effect.   Frontline, the talented writer, the talented editor, and all the many contributors--university scholars included-- took on a difficult task to make this such that it would be watched and that it could be understood.   One can only hope the people who need to see this document were watching, and that others can take the story, amplify it, and use this information in their own communities, institutions, and personal lives.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 14:48"},{"nm":"Craig","rs":"0","ms":"Currently in Canada the maximum interest rate including fees and penalties cannot exceed 60% in accordance with Section 347 of the Criminal Code. Frequently cash advance and payday loan companies in Canada are shut down and fined due to violating this law. In my opinion this is still an excessively high limit but atleast it is something, and it has not hurt Canada\'s extremely profitable banking sector.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 14:37"},{"nm":"Jimmy Aloha ","rs":"0","ms":"Citicard raised my rate from 5.9% to 15.9% ..Why?  Not because I ever made a late payment or defaulted in any way. Because as they said &quot;the current economic crisis&quot; had caused them to restructure their interest rates. I pleaded my case to no avail and made an online payment while considering if I should cancel the card. The next thing I know they have changed my billing to online instead of by mail ( I never signed anything or was made aware of this change) and actually missed a payment because I delete most emails that say CitiCard or PayPal as phishing emails. My rate is now 25.9% and the only thing Citicard agreed to do was start sending my bills by mail again while threatening to raise my rate to 30% if I miss another payment. \n I would like to join a group of millions who can let the card companies know we plan \'en masse\' NOT to make payments at those rates. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 13:56"},{"nm":"horse2wheels","rs":"0","ms":"I am not proud of this, but I owe a large amount of debt.  I have a good job and pay more than the default balance on each card. I was divorced, my son got married and my daughter was in college and blah, blah, it just spiraled.  I keep transfering balances around to 0% cards.  I am due to do this again in December.  I want to pay this debt off but if the credit card companies want to charge such high percentage rates and won\'t work with me to come up with a reasonable rate - I am considering defaulting and working with an attorney to have them work out a deal and pay back a reduced amount to another company.   And yes, I know I will have bad credit.  My point is, I am sure I won\'t be the only person taking this kind of action - shameful as it may seem to others.  I am a very good person - I know I made some bad choices.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 13:52"},{"nm":"Mary","rs":"0","ms":"I came away with three observations watching this program. 1)Banks will do whatever they can to separate you from your money. Call it what you want, but it is how they make their money. 2) Forget about the government\'s help (Christopher Dodd basically said he won\'t vote on true reform/help because he would lose the money he gets from the banking lobby. Seven million????!!!! I believe the word that begins with &quot;W&quot; and rhimes with oar would be appropriate here) 3) Individuals must do whatever they can to live without having a credit card balance and must know exactly what is in their checking account prior to making a purchase. God help the people who simply can\'t live without carrying a balance. I know there are individuals out there that just want a reasonable life and I agree the balance of who has control of the money is unfair. At the end of the day, the only person looking out for you, is you.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 13:48"},{"nm":"Jim Caudle","rs":"0","ms":"This video should be shown to all grade 12 students in both Canada and the USA.  The information should include a lists of questions that individuals can use to question banks, credit unions and other credit card issuers as to their policies so they will make an informed descion when deciding to accept and ultimately use credit or debit cards.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 13:46"},{"nm":"William","rs":"0","ms":"I was suprised to see such a candid program about the banking industries methods surrounding credit cards.  This was an eye-opening program and I thank you for it.  Please be encouraged, I will look to &quot;Frontline&quot; in the future for more revealing and stimulating programming. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 13:38"},{"nm":"Eric","rs":"0","ms":"Frontline\'s program The Card Game was excellent and important to see. The  &quot;credit-card&quot; industry is also a reflection on the arrogance and greed of Wall Street in general.  Moreover, the control of this financial power even holds the U.S. government, as the program points outs, hostage because of the economic havoc they can induce not only on the U.S. but the global economic health.  The interview with the man who owns the payday loan stores in California was interestingly the most &quot;telling&quot; of the whole program. The payday loan store owner points out the he has &quot;full disclosure&quot; of the cost of a payday loan and it is up to the individual to make the choice.  His definition of predatory financing practices are those who don\'t disclose their costs--namely most of the banking industry.  In a perverse way, the man makes a legitimate point. The &quot;courtesy fees&quot; that circumvent the Truth In Lending Act (TILA) is way a banking industry can abuse their power over consumers.  There is no &quot;free market&quot; here...it\'s just plain extortion and it is wrong. These instruments should be regulated. The banking industry is &quot;made stable&quot; by taxpayer bail-outs say that their predatory fees are &quot;okay&quot; and it is none of the government\'s business of how they run their business. The U.S. Congress has turned a blind eye to this &quot;inverted progressive tax&quot; where the low income people pay through the nose and wealthier individuals pay next to nothing. Wall Street profits handsomely while other people are losing jobs, benefits and not getting pay increases and maybe pay cuts just trying to survive. This situation is not a partisan issue (both parties are guilty). This is a moral issue and it is wrong. Thank you Frontline for exposing this issue for people to see. I believe this situation can change if enough people put pressure on government to change it. Most every American faces the same exposure as the consumers interviewed in your program if the circumstances present themselves.  After all, that what was financial bail out was all about: to prevent the collapse of the economy. What people don\'t understand is what that means to them personally. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 13:16"},{"nm":"sean b donnellan","rs":"0","ms":"in this video we are told that pay day advances are illegal for members of the military.  as a soldier from 03-06, i was forced to set up a direct deposit with armed forces bank.  i was an e1, and after deductions for the gi bill and taxes, e1\'s then made less than $1000/month.  i had never had a debit card before and i started noticing that the bank would charge me a fortune for an overdraft of $3.  i then decided that it would be best to only have one over draft fee and just withdraw as much as they would let me.  in doing so my account would regularly be in the red for up to half of my upcoming paycheck.  i know now that was the same thing as going to a pay day advance or check into cash store, but was with a bank the federal government mandated that i use.  for some reason the tables of justice do not balance here.  on one hand the military does not allow members to use cash advance stores.  while on the other they mandate banking with armed forces bank (a well exercised practitioner of pay day advances).","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 12:55"},{"nm":"jugmars","rs":"0","ms":"It is true that many card issuers take advantage of consumers, however as a card issuer in the state of Indiana,where we have already had rules limiting fees I hate being lumped into the group of banks like Bofa and Citibank; etc. We have fixed interest rates, 10 day grace period for late payments with late fees of only $17, ovelimit fees cannot be assessed until $100 over limit and can only be $20. Legislators need to look at what has worked in Indiana, and someone give us credit for not ripping of the consumers.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 12:49"},{"nm":"Jame Gumm","rs":"0","ms":"It\'s been said before but I have to say it again, where\'s the personal responsibility? Yes, Banks and Credit Card companies are fiends, but they don\'t make you use their products. They don\'t force you to live beyond your means. Can\'t afford the payment structure? Don\'t use the card. Can\'t afford the mortgage? Don\'t buy the house. Pretty simple.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 12:46"},{"nm":"Cua","rs":"0","ms":"A very good report that college students like myself should view more of! Thanks!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 12:44"},{"nm":"Ronald Zalewski","rs":"0","ms":"It sounds as though society very well needs to have protections from people who lack empathy. Comments such as those reflected from Elizabeth Warren (Nov 25, 2009 11:24) is troubling: &quot;The human gene pool is full of morons who need to be protected from themselves and the consequences of their choices. Nobody forced any of them to borrow; they did it to themselves. In the natural world, lions hunt wildebeests; in PBS/Frontline/&quot;La-La Land,&quot; natural law is suspended— wildebeests stalk lions. The lions and the lambs sit around the campfire holding hands and singing Kumbaya.&quot; Using nature as our guide for human conduct is dangerous. I, for one, prefer a world in which we attempt to care for one another, independent of whether they share my genes or not. Completely selfish models such as Ms. Warren\'s make it much easier to rationalize the greedy predation other human beings (I believe referred to as &quot;morons&quot;).","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 12:42"},{"nm":"Alanrider7","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for a very SOBERING story. It should be a wake up call to those that don\'t make the effort to fully understand what credit and credit cards are all about. There are always two sides to the story. Are the banks using highly questionable tactics? Yes, they are. Are some people failing to take responsibility for their financial actions? Yes, they are. The banks are in business to make a profit. The average consumer has fallen into the trap of thinking that credit is some sort of entitlement- it\'s not. It\'s hardball at its hardest. Money is money. It\'s hard to come by. The banks make this money available for people to use. There\'s a cost involved with that. Some people don\'t fully grasp what borrowing means. Now, the credit card companies have made it WAY too easy for people to get in over their heads. Is this ethical? Not really. Some have fallen into the trap of thinking they can use their credit cards loosely if they can just make their minimum monthly payments. But it\'s not the bank\'s fault that people borrow- nobody has forced these people to use their credit cards. That unwise choice was made freely by the cardholder. If people had a better grasp of the living within their means concept, there would be much less of a debt problem in this country. The American way has gotten off track and run into a ditch. The culprit? Easy money and less than sufficient financial awareness by people. You can\'t blame the banks if you bury yourself. Are they making this easier to do? Yes, they are. But it\'s still the responsibility of the cardholder to use or not use that card. Are banks greedy? Most certainly. Their current business position of take, take, take will paint them into a corner. People are well beyond angry and feel they are being hammered by these ruthless lenders. I fail to see how lowering credit lines and raising interest rates on customers in good standing is a wise business decision. It\'s also unethical to change the terms of the sale after the fact. They are losing these good customers and will continue to do so. It\'s not the good customer\'s fault that someone else spent and borrowed too much. They shouldn\'t be paying for their neighbor\'s folly. The banks should be taking the hit when the customers they freely chose to lend to can\'t pay. What should be a two way street has been repaved into their one way boulevard. That will bite them later on. For now, this country needs to get back on its feet again and that won\'t happen if disposable income that should go into the economy all goes to pay the banks. They are being bailed out by the taxpayer and turning right around and gouging that very same taxpayer. That\'s the root of the problem. The banks should be assisting this country rather than sucking it dry.    ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 12:34"},{"nm":"Ken Helfer","rs":"0","ms":"Help me out. I\'m a merchant and pay $120K / year to the various card companies. There is a 2.5% fee with every transaction. Your segment noted there are 100,000 transactions per minute. Is this not enough of a profit?? Why do I never hear this angle in any coverage of the issue??","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 12:01"},{"nm":"YM Wiese","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for CardGame. Usurious, predatory lending is a losing game--for countries and their citizens.\nPerhaps Mohammed Yunis--the microlender--who believes poor and mderate income people are creditworthy when given the same non-usurious lending terms and rates that the wealthy reserve for themselves--will save U.S. citizens from their own predatory government--as the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial process is increasingly a quid pro quo for ever-increasing campaign contributions.\nI understand that Mr. Yunis opened a branch of the Bank of Grameen in Brooklyn, NY recently to provide non-predatory financial services to U.S. low and mderate income citizens. How is his bank doing?\nCan you followup and let us know? Perhaps the News Hour could let us know.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 11:54"},{"nm":"YM Wiese","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for your continuing coverage of the predatory banking/credit card/payday lending business in this country.  Your show, however, tiptoed around the Washington DC &quot;climate of corruption&quot; that massive and ever-increasing campaign contributions and lobbying monies has created. Democrats, following Republicans, have been equal opportunity takers--and increasingly,the Executive, Legislative, and state Judicial process in the U.S is a quid pro quo for campaign contributions.\nPlease folloup with more stories about direct links between campaign contributions and the Federal government\'s failure to produce any meaningful re-regulation of the banking industry, limit executive compensation, and reform predatory financial industry practices in the U.S. \nPlease follow with another story about credit-based homeowner\'s and auto insurance industry rates--bought and paid for with insurance industry Texas state campaign contributions a few years back--posited on specious industry research, immediately debunked by Consumer\'s Union, that there is a link between credit ratings and homeowner/auto insurance claims. This has been another predatory &quot;piling on&quot; to low and moderate income citizens--winked and nodded at by Republicans and Democrats alike. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 11:43"},{"nm":"capt rick","rs":"0","ms":"I did not see any consumer take personal responsibility for making mistakes due to not paying attention. The consumer is on the way to their next purchase. If I can keep accurate records, any person can unless they are retarded. However,he banks are the mafia no kidding. Unfortunately  you as the consumer can fall victim to their merciless,  relentless, criminal actions. Unfortunately nu like the mafia , a customer cannot shoot them.Remove all your banking from the banks and go to a credit union, don\'t be such fools.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 11:42"},{"nm":"Greg","rs":"0","ms":"I rarely watch Frontline.. but watched this show as the topic was one that I was very interested in. I thought the show did a reasonable job portraying the problem.. but was weak on solutions.  A couple things that had an impression on me.. Credit cards reward the wealthy and penalize the poor... and no matter how much the banks say they value you a customer, they are constantly looking for ways to separate you from your money.\n\nI chose 14 months ago to cut up all my credit cards and pay for most things with CASH (the rest being check, debit card, or bank transfers).  As a result, I\'m not being gouged with high interest, I\'m not over drafting, and I\'m not going into debt.\n\nThe solution is education.  Most kids leave high school being able to do complex math problems but have no clue how to balance a checkbook.  Most are never taught why to budget, let alone how to budget.  And thanks to the great marketing of banks, few associate the use of credit cards with debt.\n\nMany people think they can beat the banks by using their money and getting reward points only to find themselves trapped in a sea of debt with interest rates so high they can never dig their way out. Many think that there is no way to survive in America without a credit card. However, According to the most recent issue of Reader\'s Digest, 24% of Americans do not have a credit card, which goes to show that credit cards do not have to be a way of life.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 11:30"},{"nm":"tom in michigan","rs":"0","ms":"Great Program! Banks have no one to blame but themselves for defaults, instead of working with me when I called to negotiate a hardship for being unemployed they eliminated my credit line and jacked up my rate to 30%- such that I could not even make the min. payment! So now instead of getting a payment from me they will get nothing since I\'ll be bankrupt soon. Good business model Banks!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 11:30"},{"nm":"Elizabeth Warren","rs":"0","ms":"Darwin was clearly wrong. The human gene pool is full of morons who need to be protected from themselves and the consequences of their choices. Nobody forced any of them to borrow; they did it to themselves. In the natural world, lions hunt wildebeests; in PBS/Frontline/&quot;La-La Land,&quot; natural law is suspended—  wildebeests stalk lions. The lions and the lambs sit around the campfire holding hands and singing Kumbaya. Should we expect additional Frontline fairy tales in the future?","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 11:24"},{"nm":"Ronald Zalewski","rs":"0","ms":"It is interesting to hear about Shailesh Mehta\'s compassion for the average consumer. Was it not his  organization, Providian Financial, that helped to usher in the current credit card abuses? He is disingenuous to make those comments from a palace built by the profits of these practices. \n\nWatching this Frontline reminded me of the innuendos and half-truths spoken by the tobacco industry some two decades ago.\n\nThis documentary offers compelling arguments for why the government must necessarily protect consumers better. Before that can happen, to be sure, it is necessary to cut off the endless flow of lobbyist money into Washington.\n\nThese financial players are a cleaner-cut version of an inner-city drug lord. I can hear the drug lord say: &quot;It is every individual\'s personal responsibility to stay free from the harmful effects of the drugs that I sell.&quot; \n\nIt is often easy to lull another into trouble. That being so doesn\'t ease our collective responsibility to protect each other from harm.\n\n\n\n\nScott Talbot\n\nIt i\\","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 11:21"},{"nm":"David Stone","rs":"0","ms":"The lesson I have been learning from this and other things recently, is that capitalism run amuck is as bad as socialism. Everyone tells us to &quot;let the free market fix itself&quot;, but when banks and congress form a partnership (fascism), and when 4% of the population control the majority the wealth in America, it\'s time for change. As I grow older I have realized the perfect system of government is somewhere in the middle of Che Guevara and Rush Limbaugh. The perfect system would be a hybrid of the two concepts. I believe it IS possible to have capitalism that is checked by a government body, so that it functions in the best interest of the people. The lie we are always told is that it is all or nothing, raw, dog-eat-dog capitalism, or communism where the government owns everyone and everything, making everyone but those in control a pauper. This is the big lie, that there can be nothing but the two extremes. There can be, and there MUST be. We obviously don\'t want another Cuba, but as Che Guevara noted, unchecked capitalism is like a pack of hungry wolves. The strong devour what they can, and either kill the others, or leave them to starve. We must bring some elements of socialism to this capitalistic HELL.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 11:21"},{"nm":"Don","rs":"0","ms":"Good program.  My wife and I are fortunate in that we regularly use &quot;plastic&quot; for\nanything we can.  Our no-fee cards are paid fully every month.  No fees!  In fact we get a rebate of at least 1% on all our purchases .  Nothing was mentioned about the fees that the card companies charge the businesses (much more than 1%) for the convenience of getting assured payment from consumers like us.  We use credit cards for convenience, bookkeeping, and the rebates only.  The card companies surely aren\'t losing money on us, but we actually are financially ahead over paying by cash or check!  Few businesses can afford to refuse credit card customers.  I feel sorry for the people afflicted by the predatory practices of credit cards that act worse than store front payday lenders.    ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 11:11"},{"nm":"Gary H","rs":"0","ms":"I had a perfect payment record for my MasterCard, and I never carry a balance. But the only way they could get me was to keep moving the billing due date around, and making it almost due upon receipt of the bill. Yes they got me, and I refused to pay it. They relented and forgave the late fee, upon my threat to close the account.\n\nThe solution to all of this is simple. A federal law that sets a maximum interest rate of about  2% over prime for ALL loans with a period of less than 6 months, and reinstating all of the laws that were overturned that prevented most of the &quot;fee&quot; abuse. Here is a question: How does the credit card industry get a pass on every states usury laws (ie:loan sharking). If I were to charge anyone 20% interest in my state, I would be arrested for breaking the usury laws. \n\nAs for Congress members like Senator Dodd, stating &quot;...that hes not doing what the banks want...&quot;, is actually true to a point. By the threat of regulation, he can fill every congressman\'s office with lobbyists with millions of dollars to pay to make the extortion go away, and let most Americans be cannibalized by the financial industry. If they don\'t threaten the industry, then they don\'t show up.  \n\nWhat Americans need is a representational Congress. The banks and all of the other industries get what they pay for, because if they didn\'t, there would be no lobbyists. How stupid are we to let this den of thieves, and their financial industry partners continue to financially rape the nation over, and over...   \n\nThe American people have NO representation within their government! No public option, no regulations for banks or industry, no voice without $5 million dollars, to purchase a vote of one Senator.\n\n\n","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 11:10"},{"nm":"jim clark","rs":"0","ms":"  The real problem is that corporate lobbying is eclipsing the vioce of the people.  Bill Moyers says that corporations buy public policy with campaign contrubitions.  You could say they buy the laws they want.  All this means there is a MISTAKE in the constitution.  Democracy is about human people, not corporations!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 11:02"},{"nm":"Leah Holmes","rs":"0","ms":"The fallacy at the heart of the bank\'s argument that &quot;the market will take care of it&quot; is that the market can not self-regulate. The major banks have formed a cartel giving them monopoly power. Monopolies are the antithesis of free markets, and they are a failure of capitalism, not - as the bankers would have us believe - a hallmark of it. Even Adam Smith knew that banks needed regulation. Too bad our banking regulators do not appear to know it. As for Congressional oversight, as long as Congress allows the corrupt practice of committee members accepting campaign contribution from the very industries that they regulate, this abuse will continue. It will take the openly expressed wrath of the entire country to change that. Frankly, we are too distracted by Ms. Palin and texting to notice.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 10:50"},{"nm":"Terry A. Barnhart","rs":"0","ms":"Congratulations to PBS and the New York Times for producing &quot;The Card Game.&quot;  It is the most concise and informative program on the subject I have ever seen.  All understand the anger that consumer\'s feel toward the interest rate hikes and fee increases of credit card companies that they rightly believe are unwarranted and calculatingly predatory.  But you have clearly shown how consumer rights and interests and those of the banking industry are fundamentally opposed on several key issues and problems.  The credit card companies were recently scolded by Congress and the Treasury Department and brought under a modicum of new regulations.  But they were left off the hook entirely when it came to setting limits on interest rates and courtesy fees.  Profit is only a dirty word when it is usury, and regulation only a dirty word when it fails to protect consumers from those most experienced and adept at exploiting them.  Corporations have rights too and are admittedly an easy target.  But the playing field is hardly level given the resources and influence of the credit card industry.  Should the credit card companies alone determine what fair profit is and what it is not?  There has to be a middle ground or golden mean in the consumer-bank relationship (reasonable regulation!) or else the problem of personal debt and bankruptcy will continue to spiral out of control.  Consumers are not blameless in many instances.  Greed and irresponsibility is a two way street.  But the credit card companies, and the banks that own them, are clearly not our friends. &quot;The Card Game&quot; is a real eye opener.  Many thanks for same.\n","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 10:45"},{"nm":"Banco Trusto","rs":"0","ms":"Banking industry controls government, not vise versa.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 10:44"},{"nm":"Shirley McGreal","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for this excellent program. For many years I had owned and used a credit card issued by Belks Department store. I always paid for anything I bought as soon as the bill came in. This week I received out of the blue a letter saying that my &quot;credit limit&quot; was now $124 and that my interest rate henceforth would be around 24% and to call an 800 number if I didn\'t accept these conditions. Of course I called and was mechanically told that, since I didn\'t accept, my credit card was cancelled. So my card went to the shredder. As a good customer for two decades, I am planning my vengeance. Which is never to see foot in a Belk\'s Department store again.  ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 10:37"},{"nm":"TED kahny","rs":"0","ms":"Banks own us !  our homes , our income , if they haven\'t got you yet they will soon!\n    I take full responsibility for loss of my money to the banks, BUT THEY WILL NEVER GET THERE HAND IN MY POCKETS AGAIN. LIVE AND LEARN !!!!!!!!!!!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 10:31"},{"nm":"Greg","rs":"0","ms":"Well done - sadly, about 95% of the population did not view the program. As the consultant made painfully obvious, financiers (credit card companies, banks, financial advisors and insurance companies), fully understand the tragic combination as it relates to human beings: varying levels of intelligence and emotion. They know full well, that there will always be that segment of the population that will be easy to exploit...especially when bought-and-paid-for government turns a blind eye to its responsibilities. That nasty word (lobbying - the sterile definition of bribery), showed itself once again. No doubt, the consumer has to play a role in assuming responsibility for his/her own behavior. The question is just how far the government should go in protecting people against their own stupidity and/or ignorance (ie: seat belt laws): Consumer ignorance is highly profitable. The banks will find ways to circumvent whatever Washington regulations are thrown at them. Historically, the checking question has always been: It\'s legal, but is it ethical ? When you hear that a small % of the population holds the major % of the nation\'s wealth, you can relate back to this Frontline program. Fortunately for the financial industry, when it comes to their customer base, history teaches us nothing.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 10:22"},{"nm":"Roy Huggins","rs":"0","ms":"I thought the show was well done although I thought it stepped over the line when it made the point about the order in which charges are applied (largest amount to smallest rather than time sequence). The implication was that this allowed them to charge the overdraft fees more times. I think there was a time when I would have wanted them applied in this order because I would rather bounce a trivial transaction rather than my mortgage payment.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 09:48"},{"nm":"Wendell Hoover","rs":"0","ms":"This was an excellent report, but clearly points out the need for basic financial education beginning in high school!  Many Americans are ignorant when it comes to understanding how one lives their lives in today\'s consumer society.  Wendell","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 09:47"},{"nm":"Brandon","rs":"0","ms":"A possible solution to the problem is to let Walmart, Costco, BJ\'s Wholesale and Sam\'s Club into the financial markets.  ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 09:35"},{"nm":"Suze","rs":"0","ms":"You know those nightmares where you oversleep for a final exam for a college class you never knew you had? For a long time I had nightmares about missing a payment for a credit card I never knew I had. Despite having a flawless payment history, I finally did miss a payment (never remembered getting the statement, but don\'t have proof), and sure enough, the interest rate got jacked to 24.99%. The issuer was Juniper, just to let people know.\n\nFor many people, credit cards are the last and only resort, plastic loan sharks, if you will. Among my irresponsible purchases: vehicle repairs, a new well pump when the old one ran dry, a tank of fuel when the fuel company wouldn\'t deliver more without prepayment. Whenever I hear the word &quot;responsibility,&quot; I suspect what people really mean is, &quot;Why don\'t you make enough money?&quot; rather than &quot;Why did you get into debt?&quot; I\'m sure many people regret that debtor\'s prisons are no longer around. \n\nThis economic underclass has been around for years; it\'s getting more visible because the underclass is becoming larger. No one noticed when the steerage class went underwater on the Titanic. By the time the water reached the luxury class, everyone was in deep trouble. \n\n\n","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 09:34"},{"nm":"Dexter","rs":"0","ms":"What a mess! It makes me realize that we need a public option in banking just as we do in medical care. We the People should set up and run an honest bank with fair interest rates and fees and no tricks or exploitative games.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 09:22"},{"nm":"james aliota","rs":"0","ms":"Just one more trick the banks use, they will hold a deposit check for up to a week on the chance rhat during that week the balance of the issuer of the check will not be enough to cover the check. The deposit check will not clear which then causes my balance to be deficient and here come the $37.00 overdraft fees!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 09:18"},{"nm":"GeorgeH","rs":"0","ms":"well done story. The bankers give me the creeps with their attitude of caveat emptor ... banking should be more like a utility for everyday consumers. Credit unions, which weren\'t mentioned in the story, have a great track record of providing &quot;clean&quot; products. That would be an interesting angle to examine in the future. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 09:07"},{"nm":"Turner Echols","rs":"0","ms":"This is nothing less than slavery!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 09:06"},{"nm":"Turner Echols","rs":"0","ms":"Congress needs to be reformed!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 08:56"},{"nm":"Debbie2008","rs":"0","ms":"Now that congress is finally turning its attention toward protecting consumers against the rapacious credit card practices, watch your DEBIT CARDS for &quot;courtesy&quot; fees and the like, because bankers are turning their attention to these since debit cards are not regulated.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 08:56"},{"nm":"Turner Echols","rs":"0","ms":"It is not irresponsible to accept terms that you have no choice over when the terms expect the credit card issuers to lower rates in a low rate environment, but they change terms and have the RIGHT to do whatever they please once they have you relying on their cash. The Obama administration is trapped in the same web of conflict every other president has been in. The laws passed do nothing but give the appearance of justice but they did nothing. They say they do but they do not. They say they protect our country but they weaken our country. This is a maddening game of lying our leaders play. I wish we would go ahead and go broke so we can get on with fixing America. The next tea party should be to have a moratorium on paying taxes or debt!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 08:31"},{"nm":"MDM","rs":"0","ms":"The bottom line is that a large majority of people are not paid a wage that they can ever survive on. When you have a system where in the last 20 years the top 5% has seen their income rise 174% while the other 95% has seen their income stagnate or drop. It is easy to preach personal responsibilty when you have an income that you can survive on. Plain and simple greed has destroyed this country and it is only going to get worse since the greedy and arrogant have all the power. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 08:16"},{"nm":"MIchael","rs":"0","ms":"Run To The Nearest Credit Union! When will consumers in this country rise up in revolt and kick the credit card companies to the curb.  The credit card companies will continue to suck blood from consumers for the benefit of a few (share and stockholders)and will continue to do this as long as consumers do not fight back and leave these card companies all together. These sorts of practices do not exist at not-for-profit credit unions. Credit unions are an alternative to these abusive practices. Join your local credit union. It is a much better value!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 08:08"},{"nm":"Digitalob","rs":"0","ms":"Frontline has degraded to the point where they produced a beautiful, slick PBS style documentary demanding redress for people who can\'t be bothered to manage their personal finances. Whatever happened to personal responsability?  Why should I have my credit options limited because you can\'t manage a credit card?  There was not a single sob story or outrageous fee spoken of that couldn\'t be eliminated by people simply living within their means.  Quit complaining and suck it up.  You made the mess, you figure out a way out of it and try to learn something from it instead of looking to the government to redress your foolishness.  ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 07:57"},{"nm":"Gene V","rs":"0","ms":"When are people going to learn!  You as consumers control the market! If you spend only what you need, within your limits this will control the market.  Banks will then have to lower interest rates and fees to try to convince you to use their products.  Credit and cash is like any other products you buy.  If there is less demand for there products the producers will have to either go out of business or restructure their business in your favor.  The market will take care of itself, yes!  but you have to also take care of yourself and control your market or someone else will do it for you to their benefit.  Simple!  Simple!  ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 07:56"},{"nm":"Eric","rs":"0","ms":"FRONTLINE\'s excellent journalism is reflected in this program and the high quality collateral information built into the website....Despite my having a historically strong credit rating and making my monthly payments 98+% of the time, I fell prey to many of the identified traps set by the credit card issuers. Two related issues not dealt with by the program: (a) Credit counseling organizations: As my debt mounted during a job change and divorce proceedings in 2006 I worked with a well known nonprofit agency to see if I could consolidate and lower my monthly payments. The mere communication between the agency and the card companies during the intial information-gathering phase caused some to raise their finance percentage and others to freeze my account immediately, so I actually became worse off than before I approached the agency. (b) Negotiated settlements: Following the credit counseling debacle I went to a respected attorney to explore the possibility of negotiating settlements with the card companies and paying off balances through a liquidation of some of my retirement funds. With his assistance, settlements were agreed to by four companies that ranged between 50 and 75 cents on the dollar. I paid the settlements with funds drawn from my 403(b), knowing that I was going to be subject to a 10% early withdrawal fee and 25% in federal and state taxes. What I didn\'t fully appreciate was the fact that the IRS considers the revenue foregone by the card companies through the settlements as &quot;income&quot; to me that I must pay further tax on. As a result, over the past two years I have incurred an additional $20,000+ in federal and state taxes that I hadn\'t anticipated, thereby necessitating more pay-outs from my retirement fund (especially difficult during an eighteen month period when I lost my management-level job and had to support myself on temporary project work, and at the same time deal with the onset of diabetes). What gauls me most in all of this is that Congress and federal regulators would allow credit card companies to make billions of dollars by charging \'pawn shop\' rates (I eventualy saw my rates rise to 21.99% - 32.99%, ostensibly to protect the companies from higher levels of default) and then add insult to injury by taxing me on the amount the companies ultimately &quot;forgave&quot; through negotiated settlements. All the while, most of these very same companies have benefitted from huge federal bail-outs (paid for, in part, by my tax dollars!) and their executives are continuing to pull in extraordinary levels of compensation and bonuses. Even in a capitalist system, there\'s something very, very wrong about what\'s going on. Bottom line: After 30 years of near-continuous professional employment, because of the situation that I have described (combined with last year\'s downturn in the market), the retirement fund that I had grown to $185,000 three years ago is now down to about $25,000. I have three school-aged children and worry about how I am going to support them and re-build my assets in preparation for my retirement. Far too many people are caught in similar or even more dire circumstances and much more meaningful action needs to be taken by Congress to help families rather than protecting the extraordinary profit margins of banks and financing the well-heeled lobbying industry that facilitates their political contributions.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 07:37"},{"nm":"Steve","rs":"0","ms":"Erect the guillotines!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 07:29"},{"nm":"Terrence","rs":"0","ms":"The show greatly unreported any personal responsibility.  In today\'s world of internet and phone services, a person can quickly check their credit card and checking account balances.  This would ensure that the person would not be overlimit on their credit card or overdrawn in their checking account before making a purchase.    ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 06:27"},{"nm":"Max Forseter","rs":"0","ms":"The payday loan store in our community just closed. I take this as a sign of hope. \nAnd when did we stop being customers and become consumers?\nThe topper for me was the people who re-fi\'d homes sub-prine to pay off credit card debt and then went on a spending spree. I did not know that. There\'s no cure for stupid. \n\nMax","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 05:37"},{"nm":"Joe Douglas","rs":"0","ms":"Drug dealers, cigarette makers and bankers get rich from exploiting the same truth--people are fundamentally stupid.    ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 05:32"},{"nm":"bankruptmorals","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you again, Frontline.\nPerfectly expressed evidence that our system feeds on the poor.\nIs it hyperbole to call it \'credit slavery\'?","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 04:50"},{"nm":"kevin faber","rs":"0","ms":"New regulations? Ah, yes, the government\'s, & politicians\', usual response. It looks good, it\'s easy to sell. It has no effect at all, because the existing regulations aren\'t being enforced now, which was the problem with the loan fraud which precipitated the mess the U.S. is now in. And payday loan companies aren\'t predatory. They\'re shylocks by another name, with a licence. Cap interest rates or fees? Not a chance. These fees are the main source of profitability for banks & have been for decades. What is really appalling is, the poorest people are paying, & the richest are getting a free ride. Welcome to the capitalist system. Will the Obama Administration change this? Not a chance. His senior financial advisors used to work for the crooks running the system, & they will never risk endangering their ability to return to the crooked fold. At least Dillinger & Bonnie & Clyde were honest about it.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 04:30"},{"nm":"Skew","rs":"0","ms":"Anyone actually think the Government is going to do anything about this?  Other than bail out these credit card companies?  SERIOUSLY? As you can see from the American Banking Association lobbyists, their arrogance shows they don\'t care about the average consumer at all!  And they act as if they have all the main politicians already in their pocket!\n\nThis statement doesn\'t knock the Democrats or Republicans, BUT BOTH FOR LETTING IT GET TO THIS POINT!\n\nWe are all SCREWED!!!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 03:59"},{"nm":"Kevin","rs":"0","ms":"The overwhelming irony exhibited in your Frontline program “The Card Game” I’m sure has left many viewers, including myself, pessimistic about our government and challenges the notion that our new president and administration can affect change against powerful special interest groups in the banking industry. The greed and arrogance of the banks powered by bad public policy and government nepotism, has once again chalked up a win for banks and a loss for the American people.  In the wake of one of the worst financial disasters in the history of our country, it was hardworking Americans that bailed banks out of financial Armageddon with their tax dollars. The paradox is the institutions that played a key role in creating this financial disaster are now being rewarded on the backs of the taxpaying citizens that have the least ability to pay and who are suffering the most. The new American political paradigm shift of “change” cannot happen quickly enough. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 03:29"},{"nm":"Lauren ","rs":"0","ms":"Excellent program on the truth-in-lending law not applicable to all the banks dealings. Our education institutions starting in K-12 should teach responsible financial management and the banking practices. Knowledge &quot;is&quot; a dangerous thing, especially for the banks. If more people were &quot;wised&quot; up to the biggest crooks of all time, we could do a lot of damage to their operating methods. I think a good business to start up would be to educate the general public about how many ways the banks are able to steal your money and how the &quot;conservative&quot; politicians are aiding and abetting them by watering down the bill to control interest rates because of their lobbyists campaign contributions. The banks put organized crime to shame! We should be borrowing money from organized crime, at least we\'d get better interest rates!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 03:22"},{"nm":"NS","rs":"0","ms":"Here\'s a radical proposition: Instead of drafting legislation to protect irresponsible people from making poor financial decisions, why not make it more difficult for people to obtain credit? If the riskiest borrowers are elimited from the credit market doesn\'t that benefit the majority of us? There are certainly economic consequences to this approach, but after this recession most people would probably rather have the economy on a more even keel than the traditional boom-bust model.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 03:02"},{"nm":"Colm ","rs":"0","ms":"Many governments made money lending at ultra high rates illegal - the term is usury.  Why do we and our government support this gouging of the American public.  I hear you say - &quot;not my problem, I\'m smarter than that&quot; - well pat yourself on the back - maybe someday with more maturity and sensitivity you will understand that people that are careless or have no will or who are a victim of their circumstances are not to be blamed but protected. It was very interesting that the banking lobbyists were not asked about teh scandalous bailouts and bonuses for the b(w)ankers.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:57"},{"nm":"Jon","rs":"0","ms":"Great documentary on credit cards and the abusive banks who issue them. Unfortunately, there was one fact that didn\'t make it into the story; consumers using credit to live beyond their means. If there are willings participants who will borrow beyond their ability to repay, there will be big profits to be had by those that dole out the cash. Sure the banks use nasty tricks on those that carry balances, but those that carry balances must realize that they are playing by the banks rules on a one way street. Failure to fully understand this underlying principle of the card game will surely end in tears.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:56"},{"nm":"Jim B","rs":"0","ms":"Slavery is not dead, you don\'t believe me? Get in debt. And then there are these words of wisdom,  TRUST ME   and THE MARKET WILL TAKE CARE OF IT. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:52"},{"nm":"Horst Lehrheuer","rs":"0","ms":"Excellent Program - In a nutshell it illuminates that we in the US are still incapable of overcoming what\'s wrong with neo-classical economics, the dominating ideology of the last 40+ years. What we really need to do instead is to again accord primacy to people first and foremost, i.e. to accord primacy to society and the people around the world and their long-term sustainable well-being (including economic well-being), rather than accord primacy to economics. Unfortunately, the myth of the neo-classical &quot;free market&quot; still rules the day and apparently also the Obama administration. This is not the change that really meets the domestic and global challenges of our time. I hate to say it, it seems to me that we are incapable of bringing about the needed structural, systemic change in the US - unless we actually experience a catastrophe like the Great Depression.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:51"},{"nm":"mike","rs":"0","ms":"I HAD A SCORE 780 FOR YEARS ALL IT WAS GOOD FOR WAS FOR MORE CARDS 10 OF THEM GREAT.BAD TIMES CAME NEVER LATE BUT THEY ALL JACK RATES LOWER CREDIT LINES I GOT RID OF THEM ALL NOW I HAVE A SCORE OF 620 CAN NOT GET CREDIT CAN NOT HELP THE COUNTRY I LOVE BY BUYING THINGS THAT HELP MAKE JOBS LONG STORY SHORT I HOPE THE BANKS ARE HAPPY IN 5 YEARS THE AVG. SCORE WILL BY 600 AWESOME! BANKS CAN ONLY BLAME THEMSELF I CAN ONLY HOPE EVERYBODY GETS RID OF ALL THIERS CARDS!! ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:48"},{"nm":"James Rhoades","rs":"0","ms":"In 24 years, with Navy Federal Credit Union, I\'ve had (0)Zero problems with being gouged or raked by the institution, in fact I closed accounts at BOA twice after being slapped with inane charges. I prefer to mail my checks across country and pay the occasional ATM fee rather than deal with the variables of intentional manipulation by MBA\'s- for God Sakes, we are bound to the IRS without ever a single class on managing taxes in any standard curriculum.\nWhatever, it\'s obvious that these institutions i.e. banks, IRS, your county or state are there to maximize profits on the poor, simple, desperate, and plain stupid. It\'s not hard to be the stupid or desperate, many people are distracted by conspicous consumption and the faith in the ability to increase income. The fact of the matter is, a Credit union is the most reasonable solution and should be the standard, not the exception. Even the Payday Check Cashing services are more honest about their practices than the Banks, albeit scum bags too. Their shame is in proliferating around the poor, simple, desperate, and plain stupid. Hit the banks the way they deserve, TAKE YOUR BUSINESS ELSEWHERE! Investing is Long Term, start working now.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:46"},{"nm":"Anonymous","rs":"0","ms":"As long as Congress takes care of those that lobbiest represent, they will not represent US. Congress is worth every dollar that lobbiest spend on them. Congress is not there for the PEOPLE, but for themselves. They need to live the laws they write for US. No more special laws for themselves!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:32"},{"nm":"Gary McKercher","rs":"0","ms":"As revealed in this Frontline piece, the arrogance of the banks and those who represent them is appalling.  Is there not something in banking system consciousness known as moral cupability?  Banks have preyed on the ignorance and misfortune of those who do not understand sufficiently the mendacity of bank CEOs to manipulate their clients. The banking system representative inteviewed revealed the tip of the totality of this deception. We\'re going to do what we\'re going to do.  The rest of you (the consumer) be damned!  Shame, shame, shame!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:25"},{"nm":"tomo","rs":"0","ms":"I find it particulary galling to hear the bankers profess to want to protect &quot;the free market&quot; from government interference but when they were starting to go under, they ran to the government for bail outs. a free market collapse would have left all the banks who lent out bad loans to go out of business as well as all the banks who made money by doing business with those banks. If banks are &quot;free&quot; to cause a collapse of the economy and get help from the government, why are individuals suddenly the only ones to take responsibility for their actions as well as having to pay taxes which go to bail out banks? as long as government continues to legalise bribes to politicians in the form of &quot;campaign contributions&quot;, free or no interest loans to congressmembers, gifts and travel expenses, all the loopholes written into the laws by the people who are being bribed, we can expect the interests of the people with the most money to be put ahead of even the interests of the rest of the country. sorry, starting to go off topic.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:22"},{"nm":"ron desautel","rs":"0","ms":" OUTSTANDING RESENTATION! WHICH AFFIRMS MY DECISION NEVER TO OBTAIN A CREDIT CARD..","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:21"},{"nm":"Ed Alonzo","rs":"0","ms":"In studying what my son\'s mother went through with credit, I became more aware of what was going on and slowly began paying off my bills.  At this point, I have only 3 cards, a car payment and house payment.  A few years back, I paid for her bankruptcy, all her cards about 23,000.00 worth and her car.  About 1 month afterward, she got an application which she filled out and mailed in even after I told her not to.  Maybe she thought I would help her, she is not capable of holding a job and the credit company keeps on piling up late fees, over the limit fees her interest rate went from 18% to over 36% what was once 349.00 credit balance has gone over 8,000.00.  I feel bad for her, but I do have a 4 y/o to take care of and even though I want to buy him a nice swing set for the Christ Mass, I think tying a rope to a tree this year will have to do.  Even he says he just wants to go outside with me and kick the ball around or play catch.  I started watching frontline quite by accident and I must admit, it is a remarkable one.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:19"},{"nm":"Richard B","rs":"0","ms":"For ten years I stuggled with our credit cards. Trying to help my wife try to get through college, we became slightly inverted financially. Discover card while making payment on the phone, the associate pressed me for 20 minutes to lower my cap. I broke down and said O.K. This caused me to pay an extra $5,000 to them not to mention the ripple effect through my other creditors. For this reason I ask why does Washington D.C. loan those business money and not charge them like the credit companies charge us! Did they not behave as some of us, for this they get low interest loans from taxpayers(us), then raise rates on us. I guess this is the freemarket at its best.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:17"},{"nm":"Loretta","rs":"0","ms":"Profits, Profits, Profits. \n\nHow much is too much?  The banks are charging way too much money for loans on these credit cards.  When we borrow money from the auto companies like Ford Credit & GMAC, we can get loans for 0%.  Why do we have to pay such large amounts for borrowing money from these banks?  There was a time when anything over 18% was considered usury.  Why is 35% now considered not too much for the entire nation to pay for a loan?  We\'re not talking just the groups that have tarnished credit, but everybody.  I have a high credit rating and have never been late on my bills, yet I pay over 30% on my credit cards and they are raising my rates.  What is next, 100% interest rate?  How high do these rates get before someone steps  in to say enough is enough?  And why are these banks accepting bailout money from the government when their profit margin is so high?  Banking has always been regulated in the past, why not now?  Have you noticed how much money these people are making that they can afford multi-million dollar houses?  Maybe our lobbying system should restrict the money from bankers coming into Washington.  ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:14"},{"nm":"Steve K","rs":"0","ms":"I agree.  It is all about Usury.  The credit card banks bought off the U.S. Congress so national banks are not subject to state usury laws.  Without this end run around state usury limits, much of the interest rate abuse would curtailed.  I also recall in the past that there was some requirement that late fees be reasonably equivalent to the expense of collecting an unpaid balance - today it is used punitively, not in any corrective manner, but merely as breathtakingly premeditated excuse to exort unearned profit, at unimaginably high margin, from consumers.  ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:13"},{"nm":"DJN1","rs":"0","ms":"I taught my children that the credit game was designed by Banks.  The rules are designed for you to lose.   The Bank is not your friend.  So, does anyone have a pair of scissors?  We the consumers have the collective power to reduce bank profits. Ultimately, banks need customers.  They need the customer who struggles from pay check to pay check hoping that the tires on their vehicle last one more week and the washer doesn\'t break.  Everyone who is outraged has an opportunity to demonstrate that outrage, cut up your credit cards. Reduce your card usage. If Washington can\'t change things, and the banks won\'t clean up their act, it is time they learned a lesson. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:13"},{"nm":"stella k","rs":"0","ms":"I\'m watching this show right now. I do agree with them about credit cards. \n\nBut as to overdraft charges. Come on! Should healthy adults be treated as morons? I mean, there\'s one simple solution to over draft charges. BALANCE YOUR CHECKBOOK! Don\'t spend money you don\'t have! If you know basic addition and subtraction, it\'s not difficult! This is absurd. It\'s just laziness! I have gotten overdraft charges but I knew it was my own damn fault. I wrote checks before I put the money in the account and, well, when I wasn\'t able to get to the bank, I knew there would be a $35 stupidity fee. These overdraft fees are not a surprise--or at least they shouldn\'t be.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 02:07"},{"nm":"Wendy","rs":"0","ms":"Fact is the free perks/points the financially &quot;responsible&quot; get are paid for by those &quot;who spend irresponsibly.&quot;  Well, you pull out your credit card when you run out of money.  Credit is necessary for large purchases down here in peasant land.  You know, the hospital workers like me?  The wages have been stymied up until now - at this point, have have lost 50% of my income.  Raise wages to a livable reasonable amount so we can put some money into a savings account.  This show illustrated laughing wealthy man, sweaty handed and happy after having bent our politicians and made us pay for it.  Throw out the lobbyists is the obvious answer.  A letter is sufficient - money changing hands is just plain corruption and everyone knows it.  And by the looks of it, not one public official can say they are innocent of it - &quot;the bill won\'t pass&quot;  you say if you\'d have included debit cards into the bill?  Why?  Why did you stop there?  You work for US not THEM.  Good Lord, help us all.  We are not losers, we are carrying the poor and the rich on our backs here in middle America, what is left of us that is.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 01:59"},{"nm":"Robert McLean","rs":"0","ms":"It was amazing that I had just happened to turn on the TV when this aired. I have been going this very thing with the my bank,(Bank of America,) I\'m on disability and no matter how careful I am with paying the bills from my money alloted me from SSDI,(Gov. checks must be direct deposited), the Bank always gets their lump of flesh first, I\'ve gotten almost used to the three to four hundred taken from me on a monthly basis. I told my wife, i think they are jumbling the numbers around to get more charges from us, and sure enough your program proved my suspicion. Not much I can do sense they control my money world, except, not use the account. When the money drops I\'ll remove my cash, pay bills the old fashioned way, and when I\'m off their roller coaster, cancel my bank and find another way for the GOV to drop my check.\nI have worked since I was twelve, finished High school and always worked until my heart problems. Laborer, Graveyard shifts, the jobs no one else would do or want. I tried to live by the rules set in place, only to find to late that nobody else was, following the rules including those that made the rules.\nI don\'t care anymore. I can\'t work and I will not do anything illegal to make more money. Truth is I just want to be somewhere else. I love my country, but its sadly not the country I grew up believing in.\nFast track to fame and fortune, screw the common man. I could go on and on, but whats the point.\nWe have no credit cards, save the one from the bank (secured) which I use to pay their fees and sometimes keep us in what we need. We have no credit and we will never own a home. Our American Dream, try and disappear as much as possible and survive under the radar. Perhaps this way we can survive living to a ripe old age in America.\n\nThanks for the program and all that PBS does. We are avid watchers.\n\nP.S. Mr President and Mr.Secretary of the Treasury, These same Banks we speak of took our money and you can\'t make them lighten up on regular people. Then get our money back and shut them down. Start Fresh, there is no free enterprise anymore, just those with and those without. Their is a tension in this country and it won\'t be good if the bubble burst, and nobody will be able to stop it till the damage has run its course, that is my fear. Again thanks to whomever may read this if anyone.\n\nSincerely Rob McLean","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 01:55"},{"nm":"John Kin","rs":"0","ms":"While I agree that curbing abusive practices through regulation is a noble goal, the program clearly showed that banks will find their way around nearly any barrier. I think more emphasis should be placed on developing competition for our banks in the form of financial institutions that have clear and fair terms for their customers (credit unions come to mind) and in fostering greater financial literacy in our society. Once more people realize they can opt out of game and are able to assert their power as consumers the banks will be forced to pay attention. That would be a far greater force for change in our system than a few new laws.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 01:46"},{"nm":"Alison","rs":"0","ms":"I had been one who learned how to use the credit card schemes to my best advantage, getting 0% \'teaser rate\' cards and performing transfer juggling acts for over 10 years. I kept my average balance below 4% though had a debt just above $50,000. I was diligent at paying my minimums, sometimes more than the minimums, and kept a crystal clear credit report. That was until this past year, 9 months after I lost my job, when I couldn\'t continue making the payments. Just at that time, my limits were being lowered by Citibank and B of A and my rates were being increased while the minimum payment amounts were being increased as well.\n\nMorally, I feel disappointed with myself for having gotten myself into this predicament - for having built up debt at all. However, if these huge banks/corrupt corporations hadn\'t helped to create our monstrous economic turmoil, I\'d still be working and able to continue making my debt payments. It\'s hard NOT to blame B of A and Citicorp, as well as others, for my inability to pay and, most likely, my imminent bankruptcy and blackening of my until-recently outstanding credit rating.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 01:42"},{"nm":"Josh Rogowsky","rs":"0","ms":"I really do think many people just have spending problems and are just stupid to think they can just charge away and not be charged any extra fees when they can\'t pay it off. Having said that it\'s not fair that banks are able to charge outrageous interest rate fees. They fact that there is no talks about capping those interest rates makes me sick. Even though I think it is up to the people to understand what balance they have available in their accounts. Unfortunately many people go into debt because they get sick, and for those people it just is even more unfair to charge them large fees. This is why hopefully we will have universal health care soon. The financial industry makes me sick it\'s all about Corporate Greed.  ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 01:42"},{"nm":"Scott","rs":"0","ms":"There are a great many things that are wrong with our society and this is just another example of the corruption that occurs with those who attain political and/or financial power, generally speaking.  Even the way &quot;credit worthiness&quot; is tracked, rated, reported and used against the consumer is fundamentally flawed and corrupt.  The fact that people\'s credit ratings and FICO scores plummeted simply because their credit card company\'s lowered their credit limits is testimony of that not so insignifcant side-effect of the abrupt changes made by financial institutes to worm around the new finance law that President Obama signed.  Despite several new car purchases for the past few years my credit score has been lower at each new purchase.  the reason, I\'m told, is because I do not have any active credit cards or lines of credit.  So, like kids leaving home for to begin their lives as adults, those who see the trap that credit is and try to avoid as much as possible are punished for not falling prey to the usary tactics employed by banks and other lenders.  The credit scam is very much like the commercial about the addict walking in a round room.  Need to work harder to make more money to buy more drugs so he can work hard to make more money to buy more drugs.  Doesn\'t that seem like the same kind of cycle with credit?  As for JDLaughead\'s &quot;Bush Bashing&quot;, I\'ll remind you that this problem has been developing and festering since the late 70\'s early 80\'s. So, you can blame the problem on multiple President\'s like Carter, Reagan, and Clinton.  As for the Federal Trade Commission, it\'s is mostly a useless, ineffectual organization.  It barely attempts to enforce antispam laws and does virtually nothing to regulate false advertizing, which is why more than 50% of television programming is now informercials selling some product that is the 21 century\'s version of &quot;snake oil&quot;.  The fact of the matter is that very little is going to change for the consumer until the consumer takes back the power by refusing to subscribe to the whims of those who are using abusive, usary (faintly fraudulent) tactics to steal money for their coffers.  It\'s time to return to the philosopy that our parents and grandparents had: pay cash to buy what you need and save up to pay cash for what you want.  Credit is a useful purchasing tool in any economy but not when it become the primary force in the economy and begins using YOU!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 01:40"},{"nm":"Dan Armeneau","rs":"0","ms":"Now that was an eye opener! Sure makes you wonder why there isn\'t a taxpayer revolt when a banker asks for bailout funds. The degree of greed in the banking industry is truly astonishing!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 01:39"},{"nm":"Tom Pugh","rs":"0","ms":"A couple of points missed by your program.  Congress allowed the banking lobby to re-write the bankruptcy laws in their favor a couple of years ago .  You also should have showed Shelby (R-AL) holding a &quot;hearing&quot; on credit card abuses a while back. He allowed banking interests to simply show up and read a prepared statement about how much they cared for their customers, etc. Not ONE question was asked by any committee member.  Shelby then adjourned the hearing because committee members had other &quot;pressing&quot; business that afternoon.  The smirk on his face as the meeting was adjourned was all too obvious.  I wonder how these people can sleep at night.  Unfortunately, I think I know the answer.    ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 01:39"},{"nm":"Beth Stone","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for another great show!  Your reporting is the very best.  I just wish we had more voice in our government and way of life.   I am afraid that we are headed towards a very undesirable future if our bank systems continue down the fee slave road.\n\nBTW:  I am old enough to remember when credit cards DID have limits on their rates!  If I remember correctly, it was 17.99%, but those folks in Wisconsin had a lower rate.\n\nI opened a letter from Citibank today about my credit card.  When I first got that card, the rate of interest was 7.7% and it stayed there for years.  Last year, they raised the rate to 14.9% and as of January 1st, the rate will be 18.9%.  BUT, if I pay my bill on time, and make a purchase during each of the first 6 months of next year, they will kindly drop the rate to 17.9%!  What a wonderful offer.\n\nI lived on cash for almost 8 years, when I unexpectedly needed to purchase a new-to-me car.  I could not get a loan because I had not proved I would be a &quot;good consumer.&quot;  What is living without debt called?  I finally got a used car for about $2500 and paid 22% interest on that loan.  I have never been late on a payment for my Amex account - yet they cut my credit limit last June to exactly what my current balance was on that day.  More than a 300% cut in my credit line.\n\nOn June 4, 1963, a little known attempt was made to strip the Federal Reserve Bank of its power to loan money to the government at interest. On that day President John F. Kennedy signed Executive Order No. 11110 that returned to the U.S. government the power to issue currency, without going through the Federal Reserve. Mr. Kennedy\'s order gave the Treasury the power &quot;to issue silver certificates against any silver bullion, silver, or standard silver dollars in the Treasury.&quot; This meant that for every ounce of silver in the U.S. Treasury\'s vault, the government could introduce new money into circulation. In all, Kennedy brought nearly $4.3 billion in U.S. notes into circulation, thus short-circuiting the Federal Reserve private banking system. The ramifications of this bill are obvious.\n\nThe banks want us in debt before loaning us money, yet cry about the consumer\'s heavy debt load.  Our founding fathers and other leaders warned us about private banks, yet we have ignored it to our great misfortune.  Most people believe that the Federal Reserve is a part of the federal government, and many other similar fallacies.  Why do we remain uninformed?  What are we teaching our children?  \n","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 01:09"},{"nm":"Allen J","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for the story on credit card industry. Every high school and college student should be educated about loan and credit card debts and what they can do to prevent the problems and be pro-active consumers. I think it is time to create national credit unions and alternatives to a banking system that has treated us like fools and looking for every opportunity to exploit us. The banks need to be held accountable for their corruption and deceit!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 01:06"},{"nm":"Kelvin M. Stanford","rs":"0","ms":"I loved the episode but dislike how these bankers answered simple questions with arrogance when they are getting a tax payer bailout.  I read some of the comments in which people say do not spend what you do not have and have a question for those people.  I lived in Alaska and had flown to Florida for vacation.  I had to rent a car to get around which cost me 3x times as much because I used cash instead of credit.  The rental agency said if you pay in cash you pay more for not using a credit card because the credit card has an automatic insurance liability built in.  Since I paid in cash I have to pay extra for their rental insurance.  How is that fair for consumers who pay in cash only????","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:50"},{"nm":"RC Levy","rs":"0","ms":"All the regulations in the world will not make any difference unless there are hard working highly competent government employees hired to oversee the implementation of these regulations.  In addition, the agencies who manage these employees will have to have strong honest executive management that can withstand pressure from highly paid attorneys who interfere with government over sight.  As a former federal front line manager I have seen the failure of federal oversight up close and personal.  If the federal budget does not include funds for this oversight it won\'t happen.  That is the case with all federal oversight agencies.  Prime example is how the SEC failed to watch and deal with Madoff.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:47"},{"nm":"John","rs":"0","ms":"I knew the Credit Card/Bank Industry was corrupt but this program really opened my eyes to what should be considered Criminal Behavior. How can the Politicians accept money from the Banks they are supposed to regulate?  Talk about CONFLICT OF INTEREST!  \nYo Jeff. Are you living on the same planet as the rest of us?  When people need money to pay bills or eat and the Banks offer you money, people are going to take it.  Have you never had to struggle in your life?  With that type of attitude your day may be coming, soon.  Did you also forget to realize what the same Banks did to our real estate market? (Stated Income, 110% Financing, etc. etc.) Then after they stick it to you on both ends, we bail them out.  After bailing them out, they are able to stick it to you again.  Snap out of the coma you are in and open your mind and heart to what is going on in what was supposed to be the greatest country on the planet. The United States of America.\nDo you want to talk about being responsible?  Do you think the bailout is responsible?  Printing more money to cover the lavish lifestyles and Criminal Activity of the same institutions who helped get us in this mess. How can you get taxpayer money in the billions and at an extremely wonderful rate and then jack up the rates for the same citizens who are funding the bailout.  Something needs to change and it should start with our Government & Regulators.  How dare they point the finger at anyone but themselves?  It was their job to protect the Country and it\'s Citizens from these unprecedented BS. When a company goes bankrupt, the employees lose jobs, benefits, pensions.  The Govt didn\'t just fail a single company, they failed the country.  Can anyone tell me what any of them gave up?  Let\'s start with their jobs, then their Benefits and Pensions.  We could probably balance the budget with the savings. The worst of it all, they would still be better off than 3/4 of OUR Country. Great Program.  Now let\'s do something about it!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:43"},{"nm":"Mark","rs":"0","ms":"Gotta love it ... problems making payments so lets double the interest rate, tack on late fees, over-limit fees, etc.  Try to work with them and all they can do is ask &quot;when do we get out money?&quot;  It\'s glaringly obvious that it\'s cheaper for the banks to have us file bankruptcy so they can get the tax advantages of writing it off.  And lets not even get started on banks allowing you to go on using your debit card after your account is overdrawn due to a mistake.  Nothing like paying $200 a month for free checking (thank goodness for the WalMart MoneyCard). As with everything else in the world today, rich corporations control everything and the notion of a true democracy is a pipe dream.  We simply continue to take it, no questions asked as if we\'ve been brainwashed -- so why would any real changes ever happen?","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:43"},{"nm":"greg","rs":"0","ms":"Personal responsibility???  What about corporate and financial institution responsibility?  Why is it that company abuses aren\'t regulated?  It\'s easy to blame the little guy and use the false idea of &quot;free Market&quot; to allow criminal activity by banks.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:41"},{"nm":"Dean Timothy","rs":"0","ms":"Excellent program.  Frontline your Number One. Keep the world informed. I just went through an issue with credit cards, with no default payments of any kind.  I went through with one month going from 9.9% to 11.9% the next month to 14.9% the following month with CitiBank.  My solution was to drop Citibank and shop around.  Now I am back at 9.9% with a different credit card.   Yes it is happening here in Canada too!  I never received a letter stating the increase they just slide it in there.  Bankers aren\'t out there looking after the normal JOE they are out there to rob us.  They are killing the world recovery.  One day they will fall and I hope I will be on the FRONTLINE when it happens.  At least the Americans are looking at it, in Canada they don\'t even talk about it.  If you Americans solve your problems with interest rates,debt cards and fees, they will just pass it on to the world.   It is a world problem.\nGo get them America!!\n\nDean Timothy.  November 24, 2009.\n   ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:34"},{"nm":"Leodis Scott","rs":"0","ms":"Frontline takes a significant step in alerting consumers of legislation and potential pitfalls, but much more needs to be done to educate consumers.  Most Americans are in essence &quot;financially-illiterate&quot; and we never have taken a course to overcome it; instead our lessons have come with the outrageous price of real life experience. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:24"},{"nm":"JOHN TODD","rs":"0","ms":"I agree with Russ Stover to a point about wrongness of the credit card industry giving out credit cards to college students and then convincing Congress to make credit card debt non-dischargeable in bankruptcy.  However, ultimately we each have to be responsible for our actions.  No one forced anyone to accept or use a credit card.  Congress only makes the problem worst while taking $100,000s from financial lobbyist.  I do not think Congress has any real answers, unless they reenact the Glass-Steagall Act and prohibit inter-state banking (break up all the banks and finance companies).","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:16"},{"nm":"John Lawless","rs":"0","ms":"I was astonished at how unabashed some of the people being interviewed were. It was as if they were looking into the camera and saying, &quot;Yes, we\'re screwing consumers. We\'re allowed to screw them, we\'re proud of how good we\'ve become at screwing, and it\'s the consumers\' fault they\'re getting screwed because they aren\'t responsible enough to fend us off.&quot;","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:14"},{"nm":"B. S. Cotten","rs":"0","ms":"Start a dialugue on HOW TO GET OUT OF DEBT and What is Debt Settlement and How Does it Work? \n\nSee the BLOG explode.  That is what needs to be on the next SHOW.  There is ways to do it but the BIG PLAYERS are forcing out what works.  If people only knew.  Why don\'t banks acknowledge the existance yet do over $10 Billion in Settlements a Month?","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:13"},{"nm":"Mark Stevens","rs":"0","ms":"Very revealing report, I count on Frontline to show the real story. But I don\'t understand how the banks can raise interest rates to these insane levels and not know where this all ends. How long do they think the consumer can keep this up? I am reminded of the fable of the goose that laid the golden eggs. Business leaders years ago knew enough to keep the goose (consumer) healthy and producing. It appears that greed has blinded many today to that principle. And now it is too late, they\'ve killed the goose...it\'s just dying in slow motion. ","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:11"},{"nm":"John Todd","rs":"0","ms":"For the most part, I agree with the Banks on this issue.  I made two silly mistakes on a no-interest loan from Chase and paid a total of $70.  I had paid advance on my loan, so I thought the fee outrageous and unfair.  I wrote Chase numerous times.  They refused to forgive the two $35 fees.  So I will never do any more business with Chase and share this story whenever and wherever I can.  It\'s the market.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:10"},{"nm":"K. Dunn","rs":"0","ms":"A sobering and chilling edition of  Frontline.The shameless greed that exists in the banking industry and the smug, arrogant double talking people at its top shocked me.\n We got out of debt five years ago only to find ourselves heading back down that road again.My wife simply fails to comprehend the credit card trap. She exemplifies the fact that those who are uninformed are vulnerable. The inherent ease and temptation to buy what we may not really need presented by easy credit is leading us towards economic disaster. Furthermore, the banking industry is well aware of this, and is simply leading the lambs to the slaughter.(where is the FTC?) \nThe key is educating the consumer. Unfortunately, there is a whole segment of us for whom ignorance is bliss. The taxpayer bailed out the banks, and now some folks think they ought to be bailed out too. We must keep in mind for every person who gets something without working, there is someone working without getting something.I fear that we really didn\'t learn anything from the economic disaster we just went through.It seems Hell is open and the hand basket is on it\'s way.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:07"},{"nm":"George Tibball","rs":"0","ms":"This PBS expose is one of the most valuable programs for the United States in our lifetime. If I could find the way, I\'d have everyone in the US see this program and BEG their elected representatives to do something about the corrupt system which exists in Washington DC--in both parties. This show exposes government sponsored theft--grand larceny--allowed to exist because of Congress\'s total disinterest in helping the average consumer and Congress\'s\' high level of interest in serving the banking industry in order to get re-elected. \n\nEveryone reading these comments will, I sincerely hope try to do something to get this horrible situation corrected--a letter to the editor of your local newspaper and TV station might be a great place to start. No wonder the world, in general, hates the American &quot;System&quot;. The world community can not hate its corrupt practices any more than I do after watching this and many other valuable programs on PBS of a similar nature. Readers, please take action. We can get this stopped eventually.","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:05"},{"nm":"Bruce Sanders","rs":"0","ms":"Very Good Program. Many of my friends felt that we should have let the banks fail. Watching this program is, perhaps, more fuel for that fire. The banks punish consumers for not being responsible with our money, but when they get in trouble they hold out their hands and we ante up. I fear that no matter what we do banks will always try to rip us off. We should have let them fail!","pt":"Nov 25, 2009 00:02"},{"nm":"Anonymous","rs":"0","ms":"When I wasn\'t using my available credit, banks were falling all over themselves to get me to use their credit. Now I\'ve had to use it to help my small business survive. I always make my payments on time and I don\'t incur any fees. But they are all raising my interest rates. I made the charges, and I\'ll honor my commitment to pay back the money. They should have to honor the terms of credit they offered me as well. They should not be able to raise rates retroactively.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:58"},{"nm":"Jason","rs":"0","ms":"It took me awhile, but I think I finally got the point of this program:  If I choose to borrow money through credit cards, overdrafts, pay-day loans, etc., I am going to pay high fees and interest rates.   As a result, these banks and credit card companies make lots of money.  It’s nice to that people are working on getting the government to stop this.   In the past, I’ve actually had to cancel certain credit cards and shop around and find better rates.  It’s nice to know I might not have to do that in the future.  Also, I hope the government will look into the higher prices at Target as compared to Walmart.  Target is closer to my house and I don’t like driving all the way to Walmart.  It’s not fair that I have to pay more at Target.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:58"},{"nm":"Manuel Robles","rs":"0","ms":"Citibank! I have held a citibank black diamond card for almost 20 years.  I\'ve used it, it\'s been paid in full. I have recently used the card for medical reasons, and have never been late and have always paid more than the minimum.  I am not even close to my credit line, $22,500.  I got a letter from citibank stating that as of January 2010, my interest rate will go from 9.99%, to 29.99%.  My only option that will not hurt my credit rating will be to pay that card off.  After talking with a citibank customer service person, she clearly explained that because I use the card, and have a good record of paying, they can count on me paying regardless of the interest rate. There are so many people that don\'t pay at all.  In a sense, I am being penalized for those that have not been able to pay.  She honestly said that. I actually understand her answer, even though I don\'t agree with it.  Did the government charge them 29.99% interest when we bailed them out?  I saw other people that respresented the banking industry on your program.  They don\'t think it\'s appropriate for the government to regulate their rates and fee\'s.  I agree with that, in that case I also think we (the government) SHOULD NOT BAIL THEM OUT.  Let them fail. Because they can\'t appropriately manage their business, the government stepped in and covered for them.  Needless to say, I am paying that card off this month.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:50"},{"nm":"cdunn","rs":"0","ms":"here is the solution. simple. don\'t spend what you don\'t have. ... who, with a nominal degree of intelligence can argue that.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:49"},{"nm":"Denise","rs":"0","ms":"great show - really informative. glad that the former CEO of Providian is so forthcoming. wish more members of congress and regulatory agencies would take more responsibility for what deregulation has done to the consumer finance industry!! Dodd has been in congress for how many years? and we are just beginning to see legislation? and I am a democrat BTW !- I agree that it is up to the account holder to manage his/her checkbook... but until recently overdraft &quot;protection&quot; was MANDATORY, and still credit cards can raise your rate based on general creditworthiness (as opposed to your specific track record w/that company). and banks offering overdraft \'protection\' as a &quot;non-contractural courtesy&quot; to avoid TILA regulations is exactly like investment companies using the term \'credit default swaps\' to avoid insurance regulations!! to Jeff - I get the \'don\'t spend what you can\'t afford\' stance - but that does NOT give financial institutions the right to play with words, and say one thing while doing another. and .. Elizabeth Warren is my hero!! ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:44"},{"nm":"RM","rs":"0","ms":"The absolute arrogance of the banks\' lobbyist is both confounding and somehow, refreshingly honest.  Her disdain and disregard for American consumers was palatable, and certainly reflects her employers\' attitude toward us, the consumers of their products.  I am appalled.  ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:44"},{"nm":"Ed","rs":"0","ms":"Up until watching this show I had not given a thought to the notices from credit card companies I\'ve received regarding changes to my account.  On my list of things to do?  Reading each notice and canceling or closing the accounts for those cards whose practices I find abusive.  Thanks Frontline, keep up the good work.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:43"},{"nm":"Rena ","rs":"0","ms":"Where did personal responsibility come into play?  It frustrates me that a program that I used to count on for an &quot;objective&quot; opinion is now sponsored by the liberal agenda, and I don\'t just mean the Democrats.  Does anyone remember that Carter suggested we put on a sweater and turn down the thermostat in the energy crisis?  Furthermore does anyone remember that our great government grew more useless agencies and controls to &quot;decrease our dependency on foreign oil&quot;?  This is not as polarized as the mean rich republicans want to take advantage of the poor working class democrats.  Elizabeth Warren wants to &quot;help&quot; Americans make the right financial choices, where does my choice come into play as a &quot;working class&quot; citizen who pays her bills and chooses not to buy the Prada bag because I can\'t afford it?  Beware of government solutions to personal problems.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:42"},{"nm":"FloridaWilliam","rs":"0","ms":"I don\'t understand the comment about how banks have to raise rates and fees to stay solvent.  We had a thriving and competitive banking industry when we had usury caps and before Citi moved to South Dakota.  Some banks were losing money due to 12% interest caps, and as such should have stopped lending.  What is this concept that the &quot;market&quot; will dictate what is fair? By definition &quot;market&quot; means &quot;winners&quot; and &quot;losers&quot;- I interpret those comments as &quot;as long as the banks can rob the public we will.&quot;  I am no fan of big government, but what is wrong with the Treasury Secretary\'s idea of &quot;shrinking&quot; government to be more efficient and effective?  That seems like a logical plan.  Or is it like health care - where we\'re told by insurance companies on one hand that inefficient government can\'t handle healthcare, but by God they will drive costs so low the insurance companies can\'t compete.  Our nation is bankrupt.  Our population is bankrupt. Why allow these loan sharks to gouge whomever is left?  If the market truly ruled, then a bank that actually was fair to its customers, made a modest profit off each one of them and worked for the common good to avoid losses and keep the customer solvent would be wildly popular and grow to incredible heights.  But something else is rigged in the game.  Otherwise, Credit Unions would rule the roost...\n\nI know this was rambling, but watching this piece set off all sorts of alarm bells about what\'s wrong with this country and President Obama and his administration has no chance to fight back the misdeeds of previous administrations and the powerful lobbies.  Our system is just as corrupt and hollow as the communist system that we celebrated falling in the \'90s.  ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:41"},{"nm":"Leonard Schmitt","rs":"0","ms":"For years I have done all my banking through a credit union with no complaints.  I have used banks which make me appreciate credit unions even more.  Through the credit union I save money, borrow money, have a checking account, credit card and debit card.  I ocaisonaly run into problems but these are my own fault and are easily surmountable.  I really don\'t understand the difference between credit unions and banks and why credit unions and aren\'t referenced in these banking exposes on PBS.\n\nLen Schmitt Nov 24, 2009 ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:35"},{"nm":"Jean","rs":"0","ms":"Other than the lady that bought a pizza and overdrafted.  Someone created and cleared a check for $900 over my checking account balance.  The bank took it from my savings and I was out the $900 until the issue was cleared up.  I did not ask for overdraft protection.  I did not ask for theft.  \n\nMy husband owns a small business.  Today Chase bank decided to start billing him $129 a month because his credit card equipment is outdated.  They also decided to start charging 23% interest and he has NEVER been late with a payment.  Chase Bank even charges a fee for \'counting change\' when making a deposit.  ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:32"},{"nm":"Don","rs":"0","ms":"If the banking industry is such a good example of capitalism (the market) at work, where is the competition in the system?  There are numerous credit card companies out there.  Why aren\'t they competing with each other by offering lower interest rates rather than all charging more.  Are they all in collusion?","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:30"},{"nm":"VillageBoy","rs":"0","ms":"Thanks to Elizabeth Warren, who has been doing so much lobby on this effort on middle-class being exploited by these Credit (Carzy) card companies. It is hard to see bankers who smile when they try to make money out of suffering people. Well done. Hope the Consumer Credit Agency comes to existence sooner than later.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:26"},{"nm":"lisa","rs":"0","ms":"I thought the program was very good you forgot the other side. As someone who works at a credit union I can tell you fees are the cost of not balancing your checkbook. Why don\'t people know that buying something on a credit card is taking out a loan for that new blouse?\n","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:21","er":"For more on pros and cons of credit unions \<a href=&quot;../themes/creditunion.html&quot;\>go here.\<\/a\>"},{"nm":"Pat ","rs":"0","ms":"I was of the opinion that we lived beyond our means as a practice, but the economic disruption of this country is not the fault of the common man, it was caused by the lack of oversight on industries that are now too big to feed on their prey. The banking industry is destroying the very population that supports it.  A parasite cannot destroy it’s host.  It is a biological law.  No, the common man did not cause the banking system to falter, the banking system caused it’s own problems and is now showing it does indeed not understand natural limitations. This is a symptom of greed.  Yes, Americans do need to learn how to manage credit.  That means paying their bills and not buying the lies and reading between the lines on their credit card statements more than anything else. Tim Geithner, don’t forget it is the common man who supports those banks.  Take care of him and you will take care of the banks, your country. Don’t forget who extended credit to people they knew couldn’t pay it; these people are in the business of money, they knew what they were doing; unfortunately a lot of American’s learned the hard way when they lost their homes, they couldn’t trust the banks. Very sad, not a way to build a strong country.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:17"},{"nm":"Alex Snow","rs":"0","ms":"It seemed that this piece ignored the invisible elephant in the room; the underlying reason for credit card debt. That reason is that IT DOESN\'T TRICKLE DOWN -- as a matter of fact, that productivity went up in the years before the meltdown and wages didn\'t is a social injustice that wealth redistribution via tax code would be justified in correcting. Everytime mention is made of increasing taxes republicans stow the wealthy away on the premise with the struggling working people who helped make them wealthy but never enjoyed the full benefits of their efforts because Americans still suffer from remnants of slave holder mentality. Like it or not, its what the rest of the world thinks. ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:17"},{"nm":"Michael","rs":"0","ms":"Where are the Americans who will roll up their sleeves and help America through these difficult time.  Certainly they are not among many of the Banking industry making the decisions.  The decisions to institute policies that manipulate their system.  Decisions to limit credit of small business so that the financiers can rake in more profit while stifling the potential to job creation an this time in history.  Thank you Frontline for showing some of their faces.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:17"},{"nm":"Danny","rs":"0","ms":"Some credit card companies deliberately holed mailing billing to just days before late fees accrue, so that\'s it\'s impossible to return payment on time.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:15"},{"nm":"robert carrol","rs":"0","ms":"Great show. Thanks again for exposing the theft by those who hold all the cards from those who are trying to do the right thing and don\'t have the advantages of wealthy conections or a greedy nature by birth. Keep up the good work and thank you....","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:15"},{"nm":"Loren","rs":"0","ms":"Credit Unions do not gouge their customers because their customer/members are the owners. Why didn\'t you give more time explaining how effective a Credit Union can serve it\'s members? Most Credit Union directors are volunteers, only interested in serving the members and keeping the institution sound. Many offer financial counseling for members in financial difficulty.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:14"},{"nm":"NHBob","rs":"0","ms":"Congrats to Mr. Bergman and Frontline. Dodd\'s a good guy.  And I just wish Congresswoman Maloney\'s credit card bill had passed when she first proposed it - back when Bush was President - It passed the House but not the Senate. Maybe if it had passed back then, I would not have gotten the letter from Citibank that I got the other day, announcing that my credit card interest rate would be going up to 29.99%  I called them and cancelled it.  Hope Maloney\'s Debit Card bill makes it thru soon.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:11"},{"nm":"RE Mant","rs":"0","ms":"None of this will matter so long as the Fed will give money to banks, because they have the ability to make everyone pay for the acts of a few until the entire system collapses.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:11"},{"nm":"Sai Kolla","rs":"0","ms":"very good program.. it gave a very good insight of how things work at legislative level...when the interviewer asked about capping interest rates.. all the bankers said it is too much government involvement and it is not government business in capital market..so far good and seems reasonable. however it doesnt make sense that if the current market is captilistic when they are ready to fail why did the ran over to government and took tax payers money? they  took hard earned tax payers money and use it for bonuse for the mistakes they did in first place.. if they took money from govt is involved so no more capitalism and so they have to play the moral rules..it is so disgusting to see how people sit on 3000 suits which are given by middle class people working in the country.. I dont think this will never change until those people know what a freedom is. those people need to earn the freedom again work thru the chain. ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:11"},{"nm":"steve","rs":"0","ms":"This program was totally on sided. Why should we feel sorry for people who use credit cards and debit cards without feeling responsible for their ability to repay on time. What ever happened to the common sense of the american people? The bottom line is this:  If you have to use credit to buy things you cannot afford to pay cash for, then any interest rate the banks want to charge is OK by me. The purchaser has the right NOT to use the BANKS money. No one is forcing them to charge things they cannot afford. Not living within our means is what started the whole mees in the first place.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:11"},{"nm":"Esteban Rodriguez","rs":"0","ms":"This show lacks a lot about how Educated are the Bank customers, that before signing anything they must READ IT, if there someone to blame shoud be the Education System, when my great great parents came to New Mexico, they implemented a culture in the Family: DO NOT SPEND WITH CREDIT WHAT YOU CAN\'T PAY IN CASH...............so far so good, I earn my miles or points, and always pay before a credit card company charge me anything on interests, I\'m probably not a good business for the credit card industry","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:10"},{"nm":"James Pawley","rs":"0","ms":"Another hour with only half the story. \n\nNo history about how banks used to be state, not national,  affairs because the people were very suspicious of banker-power. Or how this was changed. \n\nNothing until the last minute about credit unions. No graphs of bank profits over time of how the factors that made banking more profitable than industry, the featherbedding of the financial industry sucked money away from US industry, played such a major role in the disappearance of same. \n\nIn short, the word parasite needed to occur more often.\n\nC-","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:09"},{"nm":"Tom","rs":"0","ms":"Its a real shame that the banking system ever got to the point where they have to hike up interest rates and charge shady overdraft fees to stay in business.  This program makes it obvious that banks are not for everyone, only people that can pay off monthly balances and keep compulsive tabs on their checkbook.  For everyone else, make sure you know your options.  There are lots of services out there, NetSpend prepaid cards are a good example of a service that provides all of the services of a bank without the ridiculous fee games.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 23:03"},{"nm":"glickman","rs":"0","ms":"S-I-C-K-E-N-I-N-G.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:55"},{"nm":"Uma","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for your program.  The bankers don\'t seem to see one looming problem: borrowers are going to stop asking for loans because we are angry about their ill-treatment of us, and the banks will wither without new loans.  The credit card companies who have taken the most outrageous actions are on my &quot;bad&quot; list, and I\'m paying them off and closing the accounts.  I refer to things like raising my interest rate for no reason, lowering my credit limit, e.g., Sears drastically lowered my limit when I had only charged $7 plus change in years and paid it off immediately.  What was that for?  How was I a credit risk to them?  And Bank of America is another on my &quot;bad&quot; list--they sent a deceptive 9-page, small-print mailing in a nondes\cript envelope to ask (buried in the middle) if it was OK to raise my interest rate to 29%, and I had to respond in writing by X date or the rate would go up.  For whom would 29% ever be OK?  They were hoping I would toss all unfamiliar junk mail without looking at it, and so be conned into a disastrous rate.  Bank of America is hurting now, and I\'m going to watch them go down (I hope), because I paid them off and will never borrow another cent from them.  The banks need us to borrow, and they are cutting their own throats by treating us this way.  Most people have long memories.  Thank you again for your programs.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:52"},{"nm":"jeff","rs":"0","ms":"other then the lady who bought a pizza on her debit card and incured an over draft fee, i did not hear one story of what these folks spent with their credit cards. Its called personal responsibility. Do not spend what you do not have. Folks who had to spend on medical expenses, food and other essentials aside, americans on a whole, went on a spending binge and now blame the banks. Next time please let us know both sides of the spending story. ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:48"},{"nm":"Edward F Wright","rs":"0","ms":"Another outstanding Frontline program,it\'s to bad more people do not watch Frontline each week.The program really showed the great injustice in the banking world and how it feeds mostly off the people who can not really afford it.The banks could care less about the consumer,they only care about how much money the credit cards, debt cards and checking accounts cost the customers.The third party lenders are just as bad with their lending practies and most are doing nothing to change it.  \n ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:47"},{"nm":"Kirk","rs":"0","ms":"I work for a major bank in the credit card services dept, and we are told to convey to our customers that the reason their interest rates have increased are due to a &quot;change in terms&quot; which the bank is entitled to do within the terms & conditions accepted by customer when they opened the account regardless whether they use the card or not, and that due to the current economic condition, the bank has had to re-evaluate all customer\'s account for credit risk exposure in addition to meeting the gov\'t request to provide credit to new customers and commercial business whenever they ask the question. Some customers have had their credit lines decreased and by law must be sent a letter indicating the reason why, which is usually based on a credit bureau report obtained at the discretion of the issuing bank. However, some customers cash line have been reduced only but do not require a letter or explanation other than it was a business decision. If banks continue to create new revenue streams based on new gov\'t legislation, then the customer may be more informed than they were with the new CARD Act signed into law, but customers will still be subject to fees. The American Banking Assoc. may be the banks lobbyist in Washington, and the ones who designed the models the banks should use in order to maintain a profit, but it\'s ultimately the banks who make the final decision on how they will fleece the customers. Two things need to be done in Washington: Re-instate the Glass-Steagall Act. Repeal the Gramm-Leach-Billey Act. Glass-Steagall was in place to keep commercial banking from co-mingling investment banking, keeping speculation out of banking business used by individuals and small businesses. Glass-Steagall is the reason Shiela Bair has a job as head of FDIC, when it created the administration that insures deposits in 1933 after the 1st &quot;crash&quot; of Wall St. Even former Secty. of Labor Robert Reich supports reinstating Glass-Steagall Act, and believes it will tame the banking & financial industry from committing bad practices. The Gramm-Leach-Billey Act of 1999 repealed the Glass-Steagall Act, and therefore allowed a bank like Citicorp to become Citigroup when it was allowed to merge & acquire Smith Barney brokerage & PrimeAmerica & Traveler\'s insurance. Then when the housing market crashed as a result of investments in a very little understood mortgage asset backed derivatives scheme emerged, that\'s when the &quot;crash&quot; of Wall St. the financial security of our nation was at stake for the 21st Century. Congress needs to repeal Gramm-Leach Billey Act & reinstate Glass-Steagall Act! I wish Frontline would have pressed Sen.Dodd & Sen.Shelby more about Gramm-Leach-Billey which deregulated the banking industry, and asked what they thought about it now. Overall, a new federal consumer protection agency may seem like a great idea, but it\'s an expansion of gov\'t and the gov\'t is already trillion of dollars in debt. They maybe getting return on their investment in banks they quasi-own like the 34% investment in Citigroup, but the answers to regulate the banking & financial industry don\'t lay in the creation of a new agency, but by reinstating an ACT that worked in the past,and repealing an Act that has nearly destroyed all of our futures.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:46"},{"nm":"tonytaxpayer","rs":"0","ms":"While banks insist on predatory practices outlined in the show and in the absence of any regulations to stop them here are my suggestions to fight back\n1.if you are able, transfer the balance to another card of another bank or better yet a credit union  and let the predatory bank know you have ceased doing business with them.\n2.search online for the many websites that discuss the particular banks who engage in these practices and sully their reputaion by outlining what they did to you and how they jacked up your rates,changed your credit terms without agreement etc.\n3 send letters to the same credit agencies that provide them with your credit score and advise them that they should be wary of and disregard credit information from this bank/lender due to the predatory practices they engage in.(declare the bank in default of your card agreement)\n4 advise all friends and familiy members not to do business with said bank,especially the ones who have rushed to raise your interest rates prior to the new (yet weak)federal law that \nwon\'t go into effect until Feb 2010\n5 in 2010 vote against any politician who either voted to bail these banks out or were in a position to regulate this but failed to act.\ntime to fight back like david vs Goliath!","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:45"},{"nm":"John Ramirez","rs":"0","ms":"I just watched PBS “The Card Game”.  I am one of those who refinanced their mortgage to pay off credit card debt.  Now I find that the value of my home has gone down and I owe more than its worth.\nWhat a depressing report.  The problem was revealed in its many permutations, but the missing part was that no solution for the consumer was presented.  The problem reminded me of what people say about what drives the illicit drug problem.  We know that if the demand for drugs continues that those who provide them will continue to produce and sell them.  By the some token we know that if the bank wants to lend money, people will want to take it.  We won’t read or in many cases understand what the terms are and how we will ever pay the loan back.\nWhat would happen if consumers simple stopped paying on these credit card debts?  What would happen if all consumers stopped paying?  Would this be the ultimate consumer revolt?  Could this be the final solution for many who are trapped in the financial and banking quicksand?  Would the government have to step in and bail us out?  Are consumers as a group too big to fail?\n","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:45"},{"nm":"Win","rs":"0","ms":"Before I begin let me first say that I am generally known as a person with a very active sense of humor. In fact, I can almost always find something in my day to chuckle about. Sadly, I was not so much as able to come up with a single smile during the painful experience of watching this program.\n\nSitting in my living room listening to Republicans talking about &quot;Capitalism&quot; and &quot;Free Market Economics&quot; is never easy given the current state of economic affairs in America but tonight there were quite literally points where I had to make a run to the bathroom to upchuck. Even a powerful sense of humor was no protection against the blatant hipocracy running ramant on the right side of the aisle today where the till is never empty for Big Business and always empty for the folks footing the nation\'s bills. This is not to say that the so-called left side of the aisle is not equally guilty, by the way, it\'s just that they are at least a tad less blatant on screen.\n\nAll this said what I found most discomforting while watching this horror show was the very strong sense one could not avoid feeling that the &quot;people&quot; in America no longer have even the appearance of a voice in how things are run these days. Quite frankly I don\'t care a bit what Congresspeople think about credit card regulation. They are not there in D.C. to dictate to me what will or will not be acceptable. Rather they are there to do the bidding of the people. And the people quite clearly are fed up with being run over by unscrupulous fast buck operators in today\'s economic scene. Fix it my little friends or get ready for a change in your own financial state of affairs...","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:43"},{"nm":"jdlaughead","rs":"0","ms":"There was no mention of Usuary in this report, why not!  That is the problem Legal Loan-shark interst rates.  The interest rates should be no higher, that 6% above the prime, not 30%\n\n\nIn 2003, Citigroup bought from SEARS 59 million credit cards accounts, of which 38% were ZOMBIE accounts (accounts that were past the statues of limitation) In the process Citibank, Illegally, re-aged,revalued, reactivated, and resold these Extortion accounts, to Pinnical, and other loan shark outfits. Now I wonder how many of these dead accounts Citigroup is trying to collect on this extortion on Creditcards they committed, and how much of this crap is going on in the Loanshark business. This crooked outfit should of not got one dime, and be fully investigated by the justice dept. The poor consumer must be protected, which they certainly have not been under the Bush Regime! There should be a Federal Office of Consumer Protection in each state, and a branch office in each major city. The Federal Trade Commission is a big Joke and are not protecting 325 million Americans.\n\n  There should be a Class action suite, brought by the people who were Robbed by Citigroup, and the CEO of Citigroup, who should be in jail with Madoff.  This bank should not be in business period!","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:38"},{"nm":"Dave","rs":"0","ms":"Let me start by saying I totally agree with John and Russ Stover comments. Additionally, I am filled with contempt for the entire banking system and all but a very few in congress and the executive branch for the way they have behaved over the past three decades. I recall when I was a young adult in the seventies there were limits of 18% APR on bank loans and credit. I considered that to be excessive, possibly usery, but probably necessary. I think something happened beginning in the eighties, which allowed these ridiculous (460%APR) interest rates. Regulate the banks again such that they can not collect more than 18% APR on an account EVER. Having said that I must point out that borrowers are not entirely blameless. They took money even though they should have realized they were placing themselves at great financial risk. Just like the bankers and politicians they too were and are GREEDY beyond belief, and maybe a bit stupid.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:36"},{"nm":"Patrick Carter","rs":"0","ms":"Very good program.... Credit Unions (I think) have a interest rate cap on credit cards and still make a profit. Why not pass an interest rate cap for banks? If a cap works for one finanical group is should work for another group......... ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:36"},{"nm":"Kathryn","rs":"0","ms":"Great (if horrifying) show. Thank God for Elizabeth Warren-- I hope she can get her idea through of an agency to regulate this industry, rather than trying to get congress to drag their feet on it without ever really fixing it right.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:34"},{"nm":"Susan A. ","rs":"0","ms":"I missed the first part of the show, but I will watch it all online here, and I found the part I did see to be quite interesting, re: the hidden fees that come with those debit cards, whenever a consumer is using a debit card without knowing they are over the amount of their money and are now &quot;borrowing&quot; money on that debit card. This whole segment in the program helped me figure a mystery: I couldn\'t understand why this bank here in Boston tried to get to sign up for a &quot;free&quot; checking account by demanding that I ALSO agree to take a debit card AND to use it something like 25 or 35 times per month in order to keep my &quot;free&quot; checking account. I have purposely not mentioned the name of the bank here, but it advertised a very high interest rate available with this free checking account in its ads, but never mentioned this requirement to ALSO take a debit card AND to use that debit card 25 or 35 times per month or whatever it was (and it was a double-digit figure of times you had to use the debit card per month). I was floore by this pitch -- and stunned. I hate debit cards. I never am really sure how  much I have in a checking account, though I do my best, and I certainly don\'t EVER want a debit card. I ended up opening my new account with another bank --- one that DID NOT require me to take the debit card AND that actually had free checking. ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:32"},{"nm":"Karen M. Brandt","rs":"0","ms":"What an interesting and timely program.  My bank just raised the annual percentage rate of my personal line of credit. This was done despite on time payments.  I was confused on why my bank could and would do this to my account in good standing.  Many of my questions were answered after viewing Frontline.  My concerning question, What now?  What is the best action to take, if any? I am interested in advice.  Thank you.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:32"},{"nm":"Peter","rs":"0","ms":"Enjoyed the episode on the Card Game. A lot has been said about the high interest rates, bad service, unfair fees and unreadable fine print in the card agreement. But why was there no mention of Credit Unions?! Credit Unions are NON PROFIT institutions owned by the members and all fees that are imposed on members go back into the Credit Union and keep the fees low and not in the pockets of rich stock holders. To find a credit union in your town, go to www.cuna.org","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:31"},{"nm":"Debbie","rs":"0","ms":"Everything about this story angers me from the bureaucrats to the Congress for not protecting those of us who have followed the rules by working, paying our bills, and saving.  While my heart goes out to those who are in serious trouble because of debt, the rest of us are also suffering because we are caught in a no-win situation.  Interest rates on savings accounts and other safe investments such as CDs amount to nothing and any money earned is taxed.  Because of the low interest rates, many of us felt forced into various forms of the stock market.  Again money that was earned was taxed, and then when the market tanked so did our initial investments.  I understand all of the arguments concerning capitalism but when bank CEOs are making million/billion dollar bonuses and account holders aren\'t even earning decent rates for saving and investing in their companies something is wrong.  There is also something wrong when the lower/middle classes are also penalized by the government for  living responsibly by making the difficult choices that keep us debt-free.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:31"},{"nm":"Johnnie Johnson","rs":"0","ms":"US Banks: 38 Billion in overdraft fees!! These are difficult times for the American working family, but Bank of America contunies to add to thier trouble with excessive overdraft fees.Bank of America does business in 32 other countries, I wonder if any of those other country\'s govermet gave bank of america millions in bail out money as the american tax payer did? Then bank of america put the money they should be lending otamericans in the federal reserve and are being paid interest on that money. Al-Qaeda should be proud of bank of america for the way they are chocking america, one american at a time. To big to fail, I think big banking is to big for the good of the country. Maybe its time for a tea party. If we the people stand together, with the help of our elected officals, bank of america can be stoped.                                         JOHNNIE  JOHNSON","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:30"},{"nm":"tonytaxpayer","rs":"0","ms":"here are my recommendations for what needs to be done to solve the current predatory  lending/credit card practices that would not unjustly hinder bank profitability and\nprotect the consumer,\n\n1.the initial signing up for a credit card is a contract and the terms therein(interest rates,credit lines) can not be changed retroactively and can only be changed for future purchases.\n2.there can be no penalty or change in past or future rates if borrower is paying at least the monthly payment.(currently paying only the minimun payment is being used as a justification for raisng rates and lowering credit limits )\nSimple and fair  like it used to be\n","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:25"},{"nm":"Jack","rs":"0","ms":"After watching the Frontline program, The Card Game, my confidence in the banking system has become even more shaken. Although I am some of the few that pay off their credit card balances each month, I would drop the use of ALL my cards including Debit Cards if I was to be charged annual fees.\n\nFor me, I think a more important question is when will the Banks begin to realize we are loaning them money via: checking, savings, CDs, etc., and start rewarding us with better interest rates?\n\nThe present interest rates for saving money makes me seriously consider the value of keeping my money in a bank in the first place.  I guess time will tell.\n\nThanks for reading!\nJack","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:25"},{"nm":"Michael Green","rs":"0","ms":"I am the sole proprietor of a small business in a rather poor rural area. Work is very sporadic and so the balance in my business bank account can be very little at times. Due to the fact my bank, Fifth Third, will let my debit card overdraft my account I have been subject to fees. Now I don\'t mind paying a fee for my own mathematical error in keeping my money balanced. However, Fifth Third not only charges an overdraft fee when my account shows a negative available balance before the transaction has &quot;posted&quot; but then charges a second fee after it posts. To me that is charging me twice for the same overdraft transaction. It\'s like they charge me because I might be overdrawn, and then when the item posts I get charged because I am actually overdrawn. I argued with them many times about this but of course they still do whatever they want. I don\'t know how this is legal? The banking industry as a whole is nothing but a greedy scamming community. And the worst part about it all is that we are powerless to do anything about it because they already own us through our debts. Maybe everybody in America should declare bankruptcy at the same time to reset the system.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:24"},{"nm":"Patrick Carter","rs":"0","ms":"Very good program..... my comment is... Banks (Credit Cards Co ) say that if an interest rate cap is passed; that this will have a negitive effect on capitalism and that we (consumer)should let them (Banks)and the free markets take care of themselves to set fees and rates as it applies to credit cards. We saw what happen to the capitalist\'s free market not to long ago. Anyway Credit Unions &quot;I think&quot; have caps on the interest rates for credit cards and still make a profit and there market is not as large as Banks.... so would an interest rate cap kill captialism?","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:21"},{"nm":"Alan","rs":"0","ms":"I remember when there were usury laws to protect consumers against predatory loans, i.e. loansharks. They sent loansharks to prison for charging excessive interest rates. How is this different? They are ruining peoples lives. \n","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:20"},{"nm":"tonytaxpayer","rs":"0","ms":"just finished watching the Card Game. It was successful in showing the arrogant pompus attitude of the (bailed out )banks,the deception an fraud perpetrated on the consumer and the failure of the regulating agencies and the senate finance committed. However it is hard to believe that we are letting the same agencies and individuals responsible for the lack of oversight pretend that they are concerned and have any clue on how to deal with this out of control industry!\nUnfortunately,the program allowed the banking/credit industry a forum to rationalize and justify their predatory practices with very little challenge to their skewed logic,","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:15"},{"nm":"Vern Peeler","rs":"0","ms":"I just watched the FrontLine Program on Credit Cards.  I have to agree with banks on regulation. If people watch their accounts and pay attention to what they are spending, these fees are not a problem.  I am part of the 17.5% of the unemployed or under-employed in this country.  I knew back in 2007 that it was about to hit the fan with the economy and I prepared for it.  I watch what I spend and I keep enough money in my accounts to cover my credit card bills and monthly expenses. If people were responsible with their money and not looking for instant gratification and &quot;I Want It Now&quot; we would not be in this problem. I would not consider myself no longer in the middle class, but I live within my means. I never incur late or over draft fees because I watch what I do.  And If I can do it so can you , and we\'ll beat the banks at their own game.  The only regulations we need is on ourselves.  And We the market can then dictate the rules.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:14"},{"nm":"sabrina","rs":"0","ms":"I recently had this experience at my bank. Citisenz Bank charged me $150.00 in over limit fees for $21.00 in purchases. That is six purchases totaling $21.00.  It is obsered. Rather than declining my card for $1.32 bottle of water I was charged $25.00 each purchase.  Come to find out there was an error in one of my withdrawls, so it was not my fault, and the bank still refused to remove ANY of these charges.  I am absolutly irate over this. I lost my cool at the bank.....  They were well deserving of my attitude.  I work too hard for my money to allow them to take advantage of me in this way.  ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:11"},{"nm":"Dave Worley","rs":"0","ms":"  I kept hearing about how we should let a free market operate. These are the same bankers who accepted billions in taxpayer bailouts. Kind of an oxy-moron if you ask me? The banks who made bad decisions should have been allowed to fail, then the one\'s who made better decisions could take their place promoting more competition. The spectre of failure is what promotes good decision making. If these banks can always count on bailouts, whats to stop them from gambling again? Re-inact Glass/Stearns. Greed is an addiction. Bankers will never have the consumer\'s interest at heart. ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:10"},{"nm":"Jack Watson","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for very much for the program on Credit Cards and the outrageous bank fees and interest rates.  It is apparent that both sides of the aisle have responsibility, since neither is willing to truly reform the industry by limiting interest rates or non-TILA fees.  ","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:09"},{"nm":"Ruth Baker","rs":"0","ms":"Such schemes as discussed on this excellent documentary would land blue-collar criminals in jail. Not so these white-collar criminals. White-collar crime is going unpunished and unregulated as banks continue to move forward crushing the lives of good people who depended on the leaders of these institutions to be honest and upstanding.  Unfortunately, the American people were naive and too trusting, now too many citizens are in a financial hole they cannot climb out of and we are hearing that nothing will be done about it. Regulate credit card interest rates; bring on the independent oversight agency.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:09"},{"nm":"mliving","rs":"0","ms":"I kept hearing these bankers and lenders talking about consumer protection legislation as something the will damage their vaulted &quot;free market&quot;.\n\nYet without TRILLION$ of PUBLIC money their &quot;free market&quot; should have collapsed and many of the banks, including the some of the largest would have and under their &quot;&quot;free market&quot; should have disappeared.\n\nI was also struck by the smugness and outrageous sense of entitlement many of the bankers and lobbyists have.\n\nI truly believe that if the lobbyists and money are NOT permanently removed from governments around the world and especially in the United States that the United States will not survive the next boom bust cycle which appears to be rebuilding right before our eyes.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:07"},{"nm":"John","rs":"0","ms":"I  note the body language and facial expressions of the entire group of the banking profession interviewed on this program.  Their arrogance and smug expressions speak volumes about the ethical void of the banking profession.   As an industry they have gone from providing essential services in our society for a fair return on investment into the all too familiar realm of anything goes if it makes another buck.  \n","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 22:06"},{"nm":"Russ Stover","rs":"0","ms":"Kudos to Frontline for their story about the credit card industry and their dirty tricks.  Something you need to look at too is how these companies were all over college campuses in this country to hook kids on credit, the same as drugs dealers hook them on dope.  How dare these people sit there in their $3000 suits and blame the customers.  Its like the drug dealer blaming the addict for his getting rich.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 21:55"},{"nm":"Beth Gates","rs":"0","ms":"I love the comment that was made that consumers want their checks sorted from highest to lowest when they are processed each day.  What a joke!  I can not name one person that would prefer that. \nThese people should all be ashamed of themselves. They\'re purposely being deceptive to line their pockets and this won\'t stop until they are no longer lining lawmaker\'s pockets.","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 21:54"},{"nm":"John Alford","rs":"0","ms":"Unfortunately, no matter what happens, no matter how many go bankrupt, no matter how many starve as \na result, no matter how many become unemployed, the majority of Americans will still vote for the Senator from\nMBNA and the Senator from Aetna, making this quality investigation irrelevant. Change starts with having respect for \nyourself and frankly we Americans no longer have it. My grandfather only had a 4th grade education, he could see snake\noil in front of him, yet most people today apparently will drink it no matter how bad it tastes. I do wonder\nwhere you guys get the motivation to uncover the details on something that\'s so obvious, knowing full well that \nfundamental change will never occur, because the American people will never have the courage to vote for it.\n\n \n","pt":"Nov 24, 2009 21:52"}]}); });