More Financial Regulation, Not Less

I'm glad the Obama Administration is putting more financial regulations into our economy.

I'm not a big fan of a completely free market. I think the market needs to be balanced by democratic regulations.

Otherwise, the market tells us that we should pay people as little as possible to maximize proft (markets love slavery) and get rid of toxic waste as cheaply as possible (like dumping it into the river).

These examples are the big ones, but democratic regulation is also necessary in other areas. You don't want big financial institutions using savings deposits on huge risky bets that could wipe out the savings of millions of people. You don't want insider trading that allows the stock market to act like a huge corruption machine.

I certainly understand that the economy needs the freedom and flexibilty to function properly. I don't support excessive or stupid regulations. This is a point that will always be debated and that is how it should be. We need to debate the extend of economic regulations in democratic ways so we get it right and have the ability to change the regulations as conditions change.

I'm glad pollution controls have been put into place. I'm glad that sweatshops are no longer allowed in most countries. I'm glad that public companies are forced into a situation of transparency and accountability.

In our current environment (especially after eight years of the Bush Administration's relaxing of regulations), we need more financial regulation, not less.