Financial Follies

www.marketwatch.com ^ | 7/18/2010 | Chuck Jaffe

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Financial follies
Commentary: Wall Street reform does nothing for Main Street

By Chuck Jaffe, MarketWatch

BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- It took Congress about 2,400 pages to document its plan for reforming America's financial system, but the appropriate reaction for the nation's consumers can be summed up in just three words: Thanks for nothing.

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act is a big sham, and all of the back-slapping and spin-doctoring that will hail it as a grand success as it gets signed into law is pure hogwash.

If the premise of this legislative exercise was to promote substantive change so Mom and Pop Investor -- trying to build a retirement nest-egg in their 401(k) plan -- or Joe and Jane Average -- hoping to pay off their mortgage someday -- could be more secure and confident, it's a near-complete failure.

But if the aim was full employment for lawyers and lobbyists, then it worked like a charm.

Let's examine the major flaws:

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Turning and turning in the widening gyre...