More transparency will protect economy

Why is it that the 1929 stock market crash caused so much turmoil? Did you ever think about the fact on one day, Oct. 28, 1929, the U.S. was in a state of not only perceived prosperity, but actual prosperity, and the following day it came apart like a house of cards?

We had full employment, a solid manufacturing base, a great GNP. Why is it that all that came tumbling down so quickly? The answer is that the financial structure of the country could not have been set up intelligently. Critical data was not being collected, and what was collected was not available on a timely basis. Since then, banking and market regulations have worked to smooth out economic ups and downs, margin rules, FDIC backing of bank accounts, etc.

Economic crises can be avoided with timely feedback data from all publicly traded and government entities. Thirty-five years ago I worked in IT for a manufacturing company where the top executives waited with anticipation for the daily sales figures at 3 p.m. every day. And yet, that company could have sunk into oblivion before outsiders suspected.

As it is now, much, if not most, of the data we needed to see which would have foretold trouble in the credit world were locked up in the computers of wall street firms, insurance companies, available in summary form in quarterly 10-k's and annual reports - way too late to avert disaster.

We need all publicly traded companies to link to master databases with up-to-the minute exposure data for all sorts of data, financial, sales, etc. in such a way that it does not give up a competitive advantage. And all government entities must share where every penny of taxes goes.

Dave Souders

Arlington Heights