Great post, I will look into buying the DVD and expand my knowledge of the financial world around me.

One of the causes of the recession is that the banks "spoiled" consumers and gave them too much freedom and spending power. There are consumers out there with 3 or 4 years of credit history with credit cards that they can use up to $25,000. The banks don't think about the consumer's income in depth. Consumers got used to purchasing luxuries whenever they wanted and hoped to pay it off later. These purchases weren't small purchases and they included houses, apartments, empty lands, televisions, etc.

Once things got tough, they weren't able to keep up with the payments for these loans and defaulted and soon enough, this became and trend to more and more customers.

I have been reflecting on our economic status lately and about how we got ourselves into the mess that we are in now. I have come across a few articles/documentaries/etc that really capture the situation.

I picked up my current Harper's Magazine today and read an awesome article called "Infinite Debt." It talks about how a shift in our economy from manufacturing to financial services helped decay our economic health. It also talks about how laws against usury have been destroyed.

Link: http://www.harpers.org/archive/2009/04/0082450

I also like the documentary Maxed Out. You can find it on netflix.com. It is one of the movies that you can view on demand.

Meya I couldn't agree with you more! I have preached that to my sons for years, "Don't buy anything on credit unless you have a plan to pay it off" another thing, "always execute your plan no matter what"

Amen to that! Since I have been on this board I am a walking and talking bill board about that. Even to my boss when she has her expenses I tell her to put those expenses in so that you can get reimbursement and pay your ccs

You don't really need to worry about utilization effecting your score if you're not going to apply for any loans or credit cards in the near future.

I do plan on applying for other cc but not right now. I am looking at January 2009. Loans I don't have no plans on applying for any right now.

Meya I couldn't agree with you more! I have preached that to my sons for years, "Don't buy anything on credit unless you have a plan to pay it off" another thing, "always execute your plan no matter what"

I feel you Kmoney, I put it like this, do you go out and borrow money everyday? Nope, so why use the credit cards everyday. Comming from my pass debt experience, I think credit cards should be used when you need to keep it going with some type of charges or when you want to purchase something WITH A PLAN TO PAY OFF! I always look at it this way, when I make a plan to pay off, it has to be able to come from my income. If I could not afford to pay it off on my own, then I dont need it. You never know when your spouse (or yourself) may run into a lay off or job loss period.

You don't really need to worry about utilization effecting your score if you're not going to apply for any loans or credit cards in the near future.

Wow I know before I came to this forum I did not know a thing about utilizations but since I have been here and reading everything. I make sure that the purchases I make are within my means of PIF. God knows I don't ever want to be in a situation where I am trying to decide to how in the world I am going to pay off my debt.

Found this article this morning in USA today.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/personal/07/30/credit.cardusedown/index.html

Seems like society is trying to dig itself out of the credit card debt that is strangling America. At the same time the powers that be are putting the brakes on who they solicit with credit card offers

Another thing to ponder about]http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,354394,00.html[/URL]

Ah, good old Fox Noise rides again. The only news channel on Earth that can take such a horrible thing like recession and the tell-tale signs of depression, and make it seem funny. I'm just happy I got my writing job at last. At least I'll have constant income coming in a week. My goal, ultimately, is to get back on my feet -- and then help others do so as well.

Another thing to ponder about: What does it cost to make a penny?
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,354394,00.html

Can't blame me. I cancelled my last credit card in June of 1998, and my car loan was only about $8k. The only thing I'm guilty of is allowing an $18k college loan to balloon and recirculate over and over for 14 years. I'm very ashamed of it, and it feels like an anchor around me -- BUT... if this economy had been better, we'd have more business and I COULD make college payments. So, nope, sorry, I still blame Bush.

here is what I meant to say. Hasn't society been living beyond its mean for the last 20 years? Have we not gotten into mortgages that we couldn't afford, purchased cars that were beyond our means to impress others that we didn't even know? To make it even worse this was subsidized by foreign investment? Now the dollar is weak, people are investing in oil stocks, the U.S. is drowning in credit card debt and the foreign investor is looking elsewhere than the U.S. to invest his money.

Are the chickens coming home to roost?

Scribes is off the hook! Nah, he is a full man here, and a whipped one at that! lol.