Street calls the shots, and the pols play along

Dear John: Maybe you can explain to me a concept that I am totally bewildered by.

Our financial regulators are artificially holding down interest rates, supposedly to create jobs. Companies can borrow money at cheap interest rates in order to do this.

[Banks] are paying savers virtually nothing because they don’t need their deposits. [My] bank is offering mortgages for almost 10 times what they were paying me on my IRA. 

How does this make sense? The government is subsidizing the banks with my money and in turn is depriving me of a decent return on the money I saved for my retirement.

Did it ever occur to these geniuses that if they really wanted to create jobs and stimulate spending, they should encourage the banks to start paying their savers a decent interest rate?

This would do more to stimulate the economy than subsidizing the banks with our own taxpayer money. 

The banks and Wall Street created this farce without incurring any consequences for themselves, and now we are paying for their recklessness with our hard-earned money and are being denied the opportunity to enjoy a well-earned retirement.

How does this make sense? The government is subsidizing the banks with my money and in turn is depriving me of a decent return on the money I saved for my retirement.

I for one will not spend a dime that I don’t have to, and I’m sure there are millions of other baby boomers out there who are doing the same thing. H.B.

Dear H.B.: Wouldn’t you like to be on the right side of this scam?

Wall Street and banks contribute to elected officials. You don’t — or at least not in amounts that matter.

So yes, Washington decided to bail out banks and Wall Street. And yes, this happened way back in 2008 and continues to this day. 

What you failed to include, however, is that these artificially lower interest rates are also bailing out the US government, which couldn’t afford to fund its debt payments if rates became more normal. I’ve said this over and over, but those low interest rates you are receiving are really a hidden tax — and an enormous one — on savers.

So what’s the choice? Of course, you could take a chance in the stock market. If you happen to catch the market at the right time, you’ll do just fine. But if you mistime it, you’ll end up not only losing money but also your ability to retire.

As Clint would say, are you feelin’ lucky?

Send your questions to Dear John, The NY Post, 1211 Ave. of the Americas, NY, NY 10036, or john.crudele@nypost.com.