Credit

I recently reviewed my credit card bill and I saw something I had never seen before. A statement that said that if I only made the minimum payment on the gross amount it would take me 52 years and 9 months to pay off this month’s bill.

52 years and 9 months!

I don’t know what percentage of people out there only make the minimum payment monthly but I assume from the state of bankruptcies and home foreclosures that it is a substantial number.

The US is considered by many to be the richest nation in the world. Why? Well, the GDP is huge. Largely because North Americans consume huge quantities of goods and services much of which we don’t have the money to purchase …. So we use CREDIT.

Those 300 dollar leather boots look nice. That iPad is sweet. I look great in that designer coat. And it’s so damn cold in February - a nice trip to the sunny Caribbean will do me a world of good. Put it all on my credit card!

My grandfather told me that in his day, you didn’t BUY IT if you couldn’t PAY FOR IT. The only thing you went into debt for was a mortgage to buy your house, or a loan to finance your business. You didn’t finance your car or your vacation, or your leather boots. Boy, have things changed.

Yes, credit is the engine that fuels our economy. But like the gasoline that fuels our cars, the price is getting too high. The average North American is in debt for more than he earns in a year. The average North American doesn’t have the savings required to make it through a job loss, and certainly doesn’t have the savings to retire in relative comfort.

But then again, maybe we shouldn’t worry about such silly matters. What’s the old saying - “If you owe the bank ten thousand dollars you have a problem. If you owe the bank a million dollars … the BANK has a problem.”

Well Mr. Credit Card Banker. It may take me 52 years and 9 months to pay off my balance, …. But the joke’s on you… because there is no way I am going to LIVE that long. …. So HAH!!!!!!