Bye Bye, Big Bankers

I'm happy today because I did something I've been wanting to do for a while. I found this website a while back: MoveYourMoney.info and have ever since been wanting to get my money out of Bank of America and into a local bank.

First of all, Bank of America was charging me $5 for every international ATM use while I was in India. Santa Cruz County Bank has no charge for international ATM usage! Yeah!

But, of course, it's not just the ATM charges, it's that I really believe capitalism is a totally failed system if we don't take the responsibility to be conscientious consumers. Whenever possible, I like to buy local. I feel more now than ever that I am out of the corporate mess that is responsible for things like the BP oil spill, the current recession in America, and much much more. I'm working for a small local business. I'm eating almost entirely food from the Farmer's Markets which is either produced or grown locally. I don't watch TV, so I'm not exposed to commercials. When I do buy stuff outside the farmer's market, I try to avoid the big corporate brands. And, now my money is in a local bank too. If only I could run my car on local petroleum products (or better yet, no petrol.)

Go Local!

Anyway, I'm not sharing because I want to brag or anything, but because I think this is really our responsibility as consumers in this modern capitalist society, and perhaps my sharing this with you might give others some inspiration to be more aware of where their money goes.

So, enough preaching. Santa Cruz County Bank is really fun. I was surprised when I walked in that there was no huge banners and branding all over the place. In fact, I didn't even know if it was the right building, as it just looked like such a small bank like in some old movie or something. The people were super nice, and it was just a fun experience. They have a better rating than BofA on Bauer Financial, and all the perks that I had with my old account. So, things look good so far.

I was excited so I wanted to share. The Buddha mentioned that one step on his Noble Eightfold Path was "Right Livelihood." Perhaps we could also include in that category "Right Consumerism."

If you want to watch some fun propaganda about local banking, I'm including this video here from the people at Move Your Money...