So most of the debt is for student loans. How is that living “for now”? The other $10,000 is for back taxes, utility bills, and other unnamed expenses. I suppose I live for now, too, since I pay utility bills and taxes. The particular subject was forced to take on debt because her earnings were not enough to keep up with what was a not-very-wild lifestyle, which included obligations to support family members who are also struggling.
To see this as the end to some kind of democratization is to look through the narrowest frame possible.
Mistakes were made by both sides in the lending game, but the credit card companies side was much more insulated and able to survive their mistakes. People that weren’t making that much money, and had relied on credit now find themselves saddled with debt and without the money to pay for it.
Credit card companies gave people that couldn't budget the rope, and naturally they hanged themselves with it.The situation was just one that set people up for disaster. The bottom had to fall out on this thing at some point, it was just inevitable. It’s going to be a slow climb back out of this whole, but eventually I believe it will happen. The only thing we can hope is that people learn from these mistakes and try and pass on the lessons to their children. Our financial climate has changed, and right now what were seeing is a transitory period. It’s not an enjoyable thing to have to go through, but I have hope that a stronger, more secure culture based on a strong foundation will one day emerge.
Check out my blog on the end of our credit card democracy at... http://www.thedebtgazette.com/2009/10/credit-card-democracy/
#1 Posted by Frank Fitton, CJR on Mon 12 Oct 2009 at 05:12 PM