Banks and Credit Unions
The Worst and the Best Banks
and Credit Unions Available in Seattle
Absolute Worst:
- JP Morgan and Chase (who now owns Washington Mutual)
- Bank of America
- Citibank
These three are Major players in Corporotocracy and the largest three companies who are contributing to Economic Warfare in the world. This trio is the major portion of the shareholding that runs a global corporate scheme to devalue goods and resources around the world through predatory lending. I recommend we all boycott them immediately to show contempt for their horrible, destructive and selfish actions. To learn more watch Zeitgeist 2 online. This is just the kind of thing that has made health care unaffordable and ineffective. Lets boycott them to invest in our health and wellness!
Best: So far
The link below lists what Green America thinks are the best and worst
Socially Responsible Banks & Credit Cards
Still searching for the best Credit union in town. More research to be done… nothing stellar yet. I used to like WaMu till they got bought out by Chase. Compared to BOA the constrictor they were pretty good. Now I am choosing to get a bit more savvy and really consider credit unions. I am looking at their ownership, how green, independent, socially conscious and humanitarian the bank is rather than just the convenience of ATMs and fee structures.
Considering/ Investigating
- Verity Credit Union
- Boing Employees Credit Union
- Washington State Employees Credit Union(for state employees and their families only.)
- Alaska USA credit union
- Seattle Metropolitan Credit Union
- Watermark
- Green Society Exchange (a complementary currency and online sustainability nexus organization)
What do you think? Do you know a great Credit Union?
And what resources do you have to investigate banks or credit unions and find out if they are operating with a conscience? How do you know who owns your bank or credit union? What do you think of the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) and www.ran.org
Are they reliable? Personally I will never trust BOA, Chase or Citibank unless they fire all their execs and have a whole new company even though they are supposedly attempting to be less predatory. And now that Wamu is in bed with the Devil, I am changing banks even though they have been outperforming other mega banks in being socially responsible and economically ethical as far as less fees, and predatory practices. I will miss them dearly. Why oh why did they have to join with J.P. Morgan Chase?
What can we do to keep them honest?
Well first and foremost I believe in people I know and trust. Our online communities! Our independent research and experience can hugely guide and inform our decisions. Second, I believe in checking out other organizations like
Responsible Lending (CRL) and www.ran.org
Once I find some really good banking options I will post them here.
Votes of Confidence:(direct experiences-good experiences with customer service, fee structure, access, flexibility, dividends etc.)
#4 Alaska USA federal Credit Union has been voted for by Louisa McCuskey.
#5 Seattle Metropolitan Credit Union has been voted for by my roomy Darlitia. She has been banking with them and loves them.
#6 Watermark has the highest ratings on Yelp currently.
The Data Section: Here is where you can list hard data on the conscious and green aspects of the bank-what you have found out about our banks and credit unions available in Seattle. Just send me an email with “Daenin’s picks bank info” in the subject heading to info@daeninwellness.com.
Delightful Data: (here list why a bank or credit union is awesome based on ownership, green record, independent status etc. Of least importance is customer service. Do not send info on just customer service. If they check out good on everything else then customer service is important.)
I got a tip from Carrie Lansa to check out EcoBank
#4 Alaska USA Federal Credit Union is independent!
Dog-house Data: (Here list why one of these banks or credit unions sucks based on their green record, ownership, independent status etc. Of least importance is customer service. Do not send info on just customer service. If they check out good on everything else then customer service is important.)
Socially Responsible Credit Cards
I rated them worse if they are key players in Corporotocracy, illegal & immoral fractional reserve banking actions and social injustices such as planned economic divisiveness, planned scarcity and economic warfare.
I rated them better if they are locally owned and operated, relatively stable, and promise to refuse to participate in World Banking schemes, Corporotocracy, planned economic divisiveness, planned scarcity and economic warfare. I also rated higher if they are owned by the members giving dividends for member participation.
Who does Daenin Bank With?
Well, this has been a journey for me to getting savvy on the importance of being more conscious about where my money is going. I am still seeing much to be improved with the options available with credit unions. So for now it is baby steps. Baby steps steps means taking small steps that may make a big difference later. Credit unions still invest in “conservative portfolios” with our money as do banks and the the conservative and successful businesses are not prioritized by the Credit unions I have interviewed for their social consciousness, ethics or carbon footprint.
Many people are still primarily concerned with how stable the bank or credit union is rather than it’s conscious behavior and environmental ethics. I will continue to hold space for that emerging if not through credit unions than through alternative currency. I invite you all to ask your bank or credit union employee what their reserve ratio is and if they prioritize who they invest with based on their social ethics (predatory lending, economic warfare etc.) as well as their record on reducing carbon footprint. We can all become investigators and reporters on bank and credit union behavior. Most will not have heard this question before. Please keep asking I want them to understand that it is now becoming a deciding issue on who to bank with.
I am transitioning from the bank formerly known as Washington Mutual to a credit union. Today I open an account with Boeing Employees Credit Union -BECU to investigate how they operate and for now just to wash out the nasty taste of JP Morgan Chase having direct access to my account. I have also joined www.GreenSociety.net and www.Dibspace.com to explore their alternative currency and enhanced barter systems. They are still getting set up… and very exciting to see the visionary ideas and infrastructure they have in place!
Benefits of BECU:
- They are not JP Morgan Chase, Citibank or Bank of America
- They are doing their part to go paperless and have smart ATMs that take deposits
- They have more free ATM locations through their affiliates of credit unions than BOA Bank of America!
- They are independantly owned and owned by the members who elect the board that decides who to invest in and board meetings are open for members to attend (Next board meeting is on March 18th 2009 in Tukwilla)
- They have online banking pretty well dialed in with auto-deposits and billpay etc.
