On April 2, 2010 President Barack Obama signed a proclamation designating April as Financial Literacy Month. In this eloquently worded document the President speaks of a new Consumer Financial Protection Agency. What would this new organization do, what will it be charged with? Will curriculum be added to the school requirements for graduation so that every graduate knows how to balance a checkbook and understands how truly devastating debt can be? While on the face of it we who champion real financial literacy may think “thank goodness” or “finally someone is paying attention.”
I ask that you consider how long it will take or how much it will cost, and what the ultimate results will really be when the government steps in. Will we ever have the financial literacy we seek? Leave a comment and tell us what you think.
National Financial Literacy Month 2010 Press Release
I think it can be a double-edged sword. Whenever the government gets involved in something like this where it sounds like there will be a lot of money tossed around to various groups, that while having it’s benefits, also invites corruption and “gaming” the system.
Hopefully, there is some oversight and transparency to the process and the groups that are selected are truly educators and doesn’t go to the same financial institutions that prompted this reaction in the first place.
While I believe that the more exposure to financial literacy can only be beneficial to our country’s long term financial security, I would concur with Gerald’s post in that if their is government involvement there must be no hint of greasing the palms of certain firms/individuals and only the true educators are involved.