http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/30/business/banks-to-make-cus...
Because fuck you, that's why.
Because fuck you, that's why.
No:
The round of new charges stems from a rule, which takes effect on Saturday, that limits the fees that banks can levy on merchants every time a consumer uses a debit card to make a purchase.
Given the low rate of fraud on debit card purchases, banks were previously making a killing on from debit card fees; with those fees reduced, they need to find an alternative revenue stream. US banks aren't exactly doing well these days, so their need to replace that revenue with something else is understandable.
This metaphor is severely broken at this point, but you get the idea.
I don't know of anyone who supports free market ideals saying you should let sociopaths skin you alive, let alone singing praise. Some of the meaner people in the crowd do say "let the stupid people be exploited, it's their own fault if they don't realize they're being skinned and their stupidity keeps these things in power." I don't particularly agree with that sentiment, though it is rooted in another one: if customers are truly pissed, they'll go somewhere else [in the absence of government/monopolistic forces preventing them from doing so].
Basic banking services are not profit centers for banks at all. They only offer those services at low cost because the government forces them to. Basically, the upside to a checking account for a bank is that the bank has a platform to spam you for loans and other services.