The downside of deregulation

Re “Road kill on the deregulation highway,” Opinion, Jan. 14

Al Meyerhoff is dead on in pointing out many tragic aspects from the deregulation mania. As far as the mortgage mess is concerned, he points to “yield-spread premiums.” He calls them “kickbacks.” I guess that’s OK, but he may not realize that without these premiums, people in the mortgage industry would be doing many loans for free. Would Meyerhoff work for free? I’ll guess not. As a member of the mortgage industry, I am frustrated to see the staggering number of foreclosures, but what is not mentioned is the liquidity crisis and the $417,000 loan limit that many lenders have. I am glad that tighter regulations are coming into effect. It will help weed out many unscrupulous members of the industry.

Jason Hollingsworth

Fullerton

Meyerhoff correctly points out Reagan’s legacy: wanton destruction of the things that had made the U.S. a shining example of democracy.

The thing that put this country in its current weakened state is deregulation. Meyerhoff succinctly lists the disasters stemming from the destruction of most government oversight. The only presidential candidate who addresses this destructive problem is John Edwards, who barely gets any attention in the news media.

Burton Farber

Sherman Oaks