I hate bank fees. I really, really hate the fees at Bank of America, an evil institution that my wife brought into my life when we married. Bank of America puts holds on deposits for up to two weeks before posting them, but is lightning fast when it comes to charging fees for the overdrafts that their own ridiculous delays cause.

Okay, I’ve vented now. But should B of A and other banks be banned from charging whatever fees they like? Absolutely not. We don’t need laws against nickel-and-dime practices, bad service or inflexibility. We have something called “competition” to take care of that. Other banks will (and do) step up to fill the gap. For example, soon I won’t be doing any business with Bank of America. (My new bank even pays me back the fees charged by other banks’ ATMs.)