August 24, 2010
I am a professional with over 40 years experience providing expertise, products and service to a wide range of clients. The practice of "throwing the baby out with the bath water" has seemed to permeate the regulatory mindset in recent years. This concept of shoot first and ask questions later is counter-productive to the needs of the public.
Regulation has its place and should be a guidepost not a tombstone impairing the ability to properly serve the public. The misguided notion of a shotgun approach to regulation is ill-conceived especially when problems involving advisors usually represent a small fraction of properly licensed professionals and in this case, registered representatives. And, these problems apply to an even lesser degree when you factor in those who are members of NAIFA, The National Association of Insurance Financial Advisors and other like organizations that adhere to a high code of ethics which they endorse and enforce.
Please consider this and re-visit your original intent of properly protecting the public. You should emulate the intent of the founder of the modern medical profession, Hippocrates, when he stated that "proper treatment should involve not doing further harm."