Payday loans

I'm undecided as to what, if anything, legislators ought to do to regulate these so-called "payday-loans,"but I do know that if anything qualifies as usury, this type of lending certainly seems to fit the bill.

Nonetheless, it is perfectly legal to lend money at interest (as it should be), and experience has shown that the free market has served as a much better regulator of interest rates than the government. My first inclination, then, is that the payday loan market should be left to operate on its own, without any additional government intervention.

Still, I can't help feeling that this is a dirty, dirty business. It provides little, if any, economic benefit to society, and it reinforces personal irresponsibilty among those who can least afford its consequences. If legislators do decide to take on this issue, then perhaps the best thing they could do is to require that part of the loan fees be devoted towards purchasing copies of "Personal Finance for Dummies" for all who willingly give their money to these modern-day ripoff artists.