That’s the issue that B.R.E.A.D. (our local church based social justice group) is taking on at next week’s meeting. According to George, our rector, this is the first issue the group has taken on where there are actually lobbyists working against us.
Unfortunately, because I’m working these 10-hour days this week, I don’t have time to research and put together a good post about the issue. Hopefully George will find the time to e-mail me the sermon he gave about this issue a couple weeks ago, because that was a good summary of what we’re dealing with, and why it’s important.
In the meantime, the Wikipedia page on payday loans has a good overview of some of the controversy around these businesses. There is also an overview on the Center for Responsible Lending web site and more information at Policy Matters Ohio.
If you know anyone in central Ohio who might be interested in attending next Monday’s meeting (we’ve been informed that numbers of concerned citizens are what will get the attention of the lawmakers), I’ve got details posted here
http://faithfulohio.blogspot.com
the frontrunner for the mayor of Philly used to be involved in payday loans. He is a pretty good candidate (compared with his competitors) but I am having a hard time getting past his involvement with payday loans.
It’s practically a full time job just trying to keep up on all the issues. A few weeks ago, this wouldn’t even have occurred to me as an issue.
They are a license to steal. I checked out a few of them because a young person I knew thought they were the “perfect” solution to their short term money problem. Yegads!!! 869% interest. How’s that folks? They prey on those in a desperate situation, mostly uniformed and or lowest end of the money scale. The TV ads they show locally here are despicable. They show happy smiling folks walking out of their store fronts with cash in hand, saying: “We got money to go out on the town and have a good time. We deserve it.” Or “Now we can take that little weekend trip we’ve been wanting to take.” Or “Now I can get that super electronic thing-a-mabob that’s on sale today.”
Truly they should be abolished and now!
Shirl
Now they’re running “borrow responsibly” community service ads.
locations for these thieves is near a military base.
Anyone heard from the “support the troops” crowd on this?
Well, at least the Talent-Nelson Amendment was set up to protect military families by capping interest rates at 36%.
What B.R.E.A.D. wants to do is extend that same protection to everyone.
I remember once hearing Walter Cronkite say “I can remember when a loan shark in Kansas City would charge 25% percent interest on a loan.”
almost the same thing, Pay Day Loans, title loans are not normal things to do, like the commerical sez.
Want know if your neighborhood is going down-hill, just look to see if there is a check into cash on your block. Whatever happen to the “Pawn-shop”..see the things you own before you take a pay-day loan, no.