American Thinker’s Ed Lasky questions why Herb and Marion Sandler (founders and major funders of the Center for Responsible Lending) are not under more scrutiny in his recent Pittsburgh Tribune Review column.

He writes:

They, along with their political and ideological ally George Soros, are among the top five funders in America of 527 groups that promote a liberal agenda.

The Coalition for Financial Choice (CFC) is currently engaged in a national campaign to preserve Americans’ choices when it comes to accessing basic financial services.

Visit the Coalition’s website for more information.

PDLindustryblog senses drama in Ohio.  Payday Pundit says it’s business as usual.

Read all about it.

Quiznos is giving away free subs.

Tom Linafelt of QC Holdings, a Kansas City-based payday lender, gives the readers of the Lawrence Journal some facts: 

According to “An Analysis of Consumers’ Use of Payday Loans” by researcher Gregory Elliehausen of George Washington University, “customers used the loans a small or moderate number of times during the past year, typically for less than a month at a time. Such use seems consistent with the intended purpose of payday loans as short-term borrowing to pay unexpected expenses or relieve temporary shortfalls in income.”

Finally, “few payday loan customers considered payday loans as a debt trap. Only about 3 percent of payday loan customers mentioned difficulty of getting out of debt as a reason for being dissatisfied or only partially satisfied with their most recent new payday loan.”

Have you noticed how rarely newspapers editoral writers quote solid, respectable scholarship in their rants?

How about Indiana pawnbrokers?  2009 may go down on the Chinese calendar as “The Year of the Pawnbroker.”

Amex is paying cardholders $300 to cancel their cards.  Three hundred dollars is roughly the average amount of a payday loan. 

Not the Virginia legislature.  From the story: 

The House and the Senate are falling in line behind the latest clampdown on high-cost, instant loans, with both sides moving toward floor votes during the next several days.

The Senate Commerce and Labor Committee, following the lead of its House counterpart, yesterday backed legislation blocking an end-run by payday lenders on restrictions approved last year but took effect less than two months ago.

Nearly three-quarters of more than 800 money stores in Virginia have been authorized by the State Corporation Commission to offer open-ended loans that exceed the $500 maximum for payday loans and carry virtually unlimited fees.

The latest move by the General Assembly against lenders, who have spent millions on lobbying, advertising and campaign contributions, is designed to confine most of them to payday loans.

And the legislation is designed to force Virginians into few choice for short-term credit.  

A payday loan operator in Ohio had this to say in the the Columbian: 

Consumers may choose a payday loan, with its one-time fee, as their best financial choice to avoid higher one-time fees such as nonsignificant fund fees which average a higher APR than a payday loan. Borrowing $100 from a payday lender costs a flat fee of $15. A returned check fee is $25-plus.

Owners, empoyees and others in the industry need to arm themselves with the facts and hold newpapers accountable such as this owner is doing.  CFSA.net is the place to go for the facts.