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Here's the beginning of a "sad but true" report entitled "Credit card firms hurry to raise rates" by Megan Woolhouse of the Boston Globe Staff on November 6, 2009:

"Credit card companies are rushing to increase interest rates to historic highs of more than 30 percent, cut credit limits, and add new fees, even for customers who pay their bills on time.

Lenders are making the moves in advance of tougher federal regulations for credit cards scheduled to take effect on Feb. 22. The new rules will limit how companies can modify credit card agreements, specifically prohibiting them from retroactively raising interest rates and fees on existing balances.

US Representative Barney Frank, the Massachusetts Democrat who chairs the Financial Services Committee and is a leader in the effort to revamp credit card policies, said banks have 'abused' the nine-month period granted them to re-tool their practices.

'I didn't think they would be as blatant as they were about doing this,' he said. 'There's no justification for raising rates retroactively. This is really just a way for them to make more money.'

As a result of ever-escalating rates and fees, cardholders like Carole Hoppe Mezian of Norwood dread the arrival of their monthly statements. Hoppe Mezian carries a $10,000 balance on her Discover card and says she sometimes can't make payments on time. Since May, her interest rate has ballooned from 14.99 percent to 29.99 percent, and the minimum due on her September bill was $771, mostly in interest and penalties.

'I might have been better off going to the Mafia and getting a loan that way,' she said...."

The rest of the article is here:

http://www.boston.com/business/personalfinance/articles/2009/11/06/credit_card_firms_hurry_to_raise_rates/?page=full

To appreciate the essence of this article, one has only to look up the definition of "blood-sucker." Here are a few definitions from The American HeritageŽ Dictionary: 1. An animal, such as a leech, that sucks blood. 2. An extortionist or a blackmailer.

Take your pick.

- Ed Smith, Publisher
The EHS Letter Manual