Sweep the Suites of White-Collar Criminals

Re “White Collars, Black Hats,” Commentary, April 3: Bravo, John Balzar! I too find the double standard that society applies to punishing street crime versus suite crime infuriating. What is even more maddening is the public’s apathy. When will we wake up and do something about the way white-collar criminals are running roughshod over hard-working people’s lives?

We should be out in the streets protesting with the same patriotic fervor we displayed after Sept. 11. America’s success is due to the “ordinary” people who have invested their hard work and effort, not the fat cats who have simply invested their money in the stock market! The lack of ethics and accountability among those who occupy the upper echelons of big business is every bit as threatening to the welfare of this society as any threat from abroad. We need to realize this and punish corporate lawbreakers as the traitors they are.

Jan Zahler Lebow

El Segundo