Comment Text:
I am Sheila Ferri, I drive 90 minutes (175 miles round trip) to and from work every day, and our family feels the effects of every increase in the price of gas.
I urge you to curb excessive gambling in commodities markets like food and oil.
While many factors contribute to today’s highly volatile commodity prices, it is clear that excessive speculation is partially responsible, as shown in dozens of studies by respected institutions such as Princeton, MIT, Petersen Institute, University of London, Yale, the United Nations and the U.S. Senate.
Speculation thus imposes financial hardships on families around the country. Sudden rises in gas and food prices force us to make difficult decisions and sacrifices. Especially right now, with so many families struggling, and unemployment barely beginning to decrease, we cannot allow speculators to unduly affect our food and gas prices.
In a free-market system, only the factors of supply and demand should determine the cost of commodities such as food, fuel prices and the basic necessary materials of construction and infrastructure maintenance. Speculation in these market areas are damaging the economic structure of the nation; working to make economic recovery fail and in the long run make a minority of people super wealthy at the expense of everyone else and the nation. In times of economic crisis, these practices are equivalent to treason.
Please BAN gambling in commodities markets involved in critical markets that affect our national security and damage the nation's monetary system, and do not allow the BAN to be undermined by exemptions or exceptions, or allow Wall Street gamblers to escape it with new Ponzi Schemes in an attempt to foist on the public crime repackaged as a new financial instrument.
Thank you for your consideration.
