I Think I’d Better Think It Out Again

I have been working for the last couple months for a small legal group which is helping homeowners to avoid foreclosure and keep their homes.  I’m not doing anything grand, just filling out paperwork, but it is fascinating work.  Once upon a time, I dreamed of being a lawyer, not the go-to-court-and-give-fabulous-speeches kind, but the fill-out-paperwork-give-advice-and-help-people-in-their-every-day-lives kind.  This little part time job is letting me live out a childhood fantasy and it’s fun to me.

It’s also infuriating.  In two months, I have seen so many examples of big business lying, cheating and deceiving the “little guy.”  I just want to drive over to some of these big banks and smack people.  Dishonest salespeople, shoddy paperwork, flat out ignoring the law….in just two months!  I can’t imagine what I’ll have seen by the end of the year.

Before taking this job, I thought that most people in foreclosure were there because of irresponsibility or personal catastrophe.  For one group, I merely shrugged my shoulders and hoped they would learn from this painful lesson.  The other group hurt my heart and I wanted someone to help them, but I didn’t really think too much about it.  Now the personal tragedies of both groups fill a file box in my computer room.  Now I know that there is a third group, the victims.  I had no idea about the people who were innocent and in foreclosure because of the actions of giant corporations.

I used to be the free market girl, the anti-regulation queen.  I’m not sure where I am now.  I believe that corporations behaving well should be left alone and those behaving badly should have someone to keep an eye on them, but I’m not sure who that should be.  The government has had a turn and failed miserably as we can see from the news this week. Three major banking institutions have announced a freeze on foreclosures because of missing paperwork, lying employees, and people in their offices just making stuff up.  I want there to be someone out there looking out for all of us.  I just don’t know who that should be, and quite frankly I’m afraid of the answer.