Comment Text:
George McCain
1272 Hidden Valley Rd
Shaftsbury, VT 05262-9494
March 25, 2011
David Stawick
Secretary, Commodity Futures Trading Commission Three Lafayette Centre
1155 21st Street, NW
Washington, DC 20581
Dear Mr. Stawick:
Excessive speculation hurt the economy in 2008 and, once again, is harming the economy in 2011. According to data recently released by the Commission, speculators have raised their positions in energy markets by
64 percent compared to June 2008, bringing speculation to the highest level on record.
We need meaningful, effective speculative position limits to restore balance to commodities markets and ensure that they are connected to market fundamentals, so that they fulfill their price-discovery function properly and without distortions caused by excessive speculation. In particular, I believe futures should be used only by people or organizations that expect to take delivery of the product, not for people or organizations that buy and sell future contracts with no intention to take delivery of the product.
People and organizations that buy and sell future contracts with no intention of using the product or distributing the product and making their profits at the expense of all consumers.
Time is of the essence, and I urge you to act quickly. Our pocketbooks and the broader economy depend on it.
Sincerely,
George McCain
802-442-7118
