Fed decision to raise rates comes with jitters: Your Say

The Federal Reserve increased short-term interest rates Wednesday for the first time in nearly 10 years. Letter to the editor:

I just don’t see the point in the Federal Reserve’s hike in interest rates (“Liftoff! Fed raises rates for first time since ’06”). Inflation is near zero (as confirmed by static Social Security payments for 2016), unemployment is down, the economy is strong but growing only at a reasonable and controlled rate. An increase in interest rates will benefit only a few, such as banks and other money lenders.

In the meantime, stocks, bonds, housing, construction, auto, small businesses and many others that depend on borrowing will suffer.

Our economy is humming along, certainly as compared with other industrialized nations. Whatever happened to the old motto: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”? Our economy isn’t broken, so why break it?

Larry Engel; Savannah, Ga.

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Comments from Facebook:

Higher interest rates will remove dollars from the marketplace. Removing money from the marketplace will reduce money in the hands of consumers. Less money in the hands of consumers will result in less buying, and less buying will result in unemployment.

— Walter Lampton

The move means that the economy is getting better, period. The Federal Reserve should increase the rate when things are getting better and decrease it when things are getting worse.

— Scott Barclay

Way too much hullabaloo was made over this decision. The Federal Reserve can’t control the economy despite what it leads you to believe.

— Eddie Willers

Can anyone actually say the economy is roaring? Well, it will have a definite slowdown now.

— Martin Vaughn

Split your personal investments among bonds, gold/silver and mutual funds. Then you won’t be bothered by this stuff.

— Lesley Black

This is a completely unnecessary increase. What’s needed is fiscal policy action, not counterproductive monetary policy.

— Diana Powe

The economy is not that strong, and the last thing we all need now is to tap the brakes on it.

— Glen Allbritton

I would say the hike is about three to four years too late.

— Rodd Johnson