In one of my, You Might Be A
Progressive, series, I posted one that created quite a bit of
discussion. You might be a progressive if you believe a bank
should loan you money for free in the form of overdrafts. The
statement doesn't fully represent an overdraft, but it did create
discussion on the topic of bank overdraft fees.
Earlier
in the day, I had a progressive complain about the billions charged
to bank customers because of overdraft fees. A progressive on Twitter,
a Bernie Sanders fan, said, “Banks collected over $30 billion in
overdraft fees last year from people who could ill-afford it.”
This
is classic progressive thinking. I have no reason to doubt the $30
billion figure and don't deny that these fees are set high and
increases company profits. What progressives don't understand,
overdraft fees aren't solely motivated by profit. These fees are to
dissuade people from writing checks for amounts greater than their
balance. Intentionally writing a bad check is against the law even if
you plan on depositing funds to cover that check before it clears.
