Action Against Price Fixing

* “Fixing the Price Fixers” (editorial, June 4) was well-written, but it does not go far enough. On May 20 (Business) there was an article saying that appliance manufacturers Whirlpool and Maytag were warning retailers that if certain items were sold below the company’s stated price, supplies of products would be cut off. The companies claim this is not price fixing. I maintain it is the worst form of price fixing. It is telling consumers that they have to pay this price for a product even if a retailer wants to sell it for less.

As for Whirlpool and Maytag, it will be a cold day in a particular place before I buy their products. That’s a sad statement to have to make, as we owned a Maytag washer for over 20 years before needing to replace it.

Whirlpool and Maytag aren’t alone. Look at some of the sale ads from major department stores and you will often see exclusions. I spoke with a marketing person from one of the stores, who indicated the exclusions were manufacturer policy, not the store’s. Legislation is needed to stop this.

MARK LEES

Rancho Mirage

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I was incensed to read of the price fixing of ingredients used for vitamins by the world’s largest manufacturers. I agree that the Justice Department and all the federal and state agencies that have the authority to prosecute those companies found to fix prices, illegally dump chemical waste or continuously pollute our environment should do so to the fullest extent of the law. Perhaps if CEOs and company presidents were sentenced to jail, the message would finally be heard and the punishment would fit the crime and not be considered just another “white-collar” incident dismissed with a slap on the wrist by our courts.

JOHN POVRAZNIK

Van Nuys