credit cards, ******

yes, very informative.

...her interest rate was raised to 29.7%

But back to credit cards, it was a bit of a financial black hole.

Quote:

But back to credit cards, it was a bit of a financial black hole.

what about today's families, tapped out on credit, income from work likely falling, home value probably less than they paid for it, and then getting hit now with 20-30% interest on credit card debt that they have no way to pay off any time during the next decade...

30 ******* percent!!!!

The noose is tightening around their necks, how will they escape? will they escape?

Quote:

But back to credit cards, it was a bit of a financial black hole.



what about today's families, tapped out on credit, income from work likely falling, home value probably less than they paid for it, and then getting hit now with 20-30% interest on credit card debt that they have no way to pay off any time during the next decade...

30 ******* percent!!!!

The noose is tightening around their necks, how will they escape? will they escape?

My wife and I were raised by good parents who taught us sensible economic strategies, they should really teach this stuff in the schools.

My wife and I were raised by good parents who taught us sensible economic strategies, they should really teach this stuff in the schools.



Really? Who is going to teach these classes, the same Ivy League business school hotshots who five years ago were running around telling everyone that lots of debt does not matter? The wall street experts (Ivy League business school hotshots also) who claimed that they understood risk when in fact they were as clueless as the average wino on Wall Street? The experts are the ones who designed and administered our thoroughly F==ed up system. Might better get Grandpa out of the home, he who lived through the depression, and while he is a bit senile he still is more wise about financial matters than the "experts".]

My parents did, in fact grow up during the depression. My dad came from blue collar stock, while my mom came from a more blue-blooded line.

They instilled in me a strong sense of living within my means.

Loans charged off as uncollectible nearly doubled from a year ago in the third quarter, to $136 billion, the FDIC said.

Meanwhile, consumers are coming off a debt binge of their own and trying to mend their own tattered balance sheets.

"The consumer is cutting back as the banks are trying to hack down their loan books," said Dan Seiver, a finance professor at San Diego State. "It's not surprising, but it's not good news for the creditworthy small business that can't get money to expand."

That banks are shrinking their balance sheets at a time when the economy is sputtering and consumers are strapped is no surprise, Olasov said. He said the lending slowdown offers a sobering reminder of banks' limitations.