Anyone else think that 22-37% Credit Card interest rates are bankrupting the country?

[PCIntern]

How DARE they be allowed to charge these rates? They have created the 'failure-to-pay" clientele which they are so excited about when you question their extraordinary interest rates, telling you that it's all those deadbeats who are costing you money. Lying bastards. I believe that there should be a grass-roots movement to politely refuse to pay these bills and FORCE them to lower the rates.

Nothing wrong with a little non-violent protest, right Mahatma?

[Cronus Protagonist]

1. I know I am not paying ANY of my credit card bills now

I figure the high rates indicate high risk loans, so I'm glad to be able to fulfill their expectations and default on the whole lot of them.

[regnaD kciN]

5. If so, you better be planning on filing for bankruptcy...

...or else they can take everything you have and a good chunk of what you earn. See my comments below.

[Cronus Protagonist]

13. Good luck to them on that

They can have everything they want. As for my earnings... lol... let them eat cake. :)

[RebelOne]

26. Absolutely correct. I had 3 judgments against me for unpaid credit card bills.

I was forced to file a Chapter 13 bankruptcy because one creditor had my pay garnished.

[roguevalley]

51. its usury. I took my credit cards (sick dogs) and went to my credit

union, getting a card at 7% for the life of the loan and consolidated today. I encourage that. It lets you pay them off.

[villager]

2. I think a credit card "rent strike" is a decade or so overdue....

But yes...

[regnaD kciN]

3. It sure isn't helping it...

...when someone is already having every spare cent they earn going toward paying off credit-card bills, to have the banks' response be to simply hike up the interest rate (so that they must pay even higher minimum monthly payments, without paying off their principal any faster) is the height of illogic.

The problem with the "non-violent protest" is that, instead of lowering their rates, they will simply go to court and seek "default judgments" against anyone so refusing, that allows them to basically ransack everyone's bank account, seize their property, and garnish their wages until the debt is paid in full.

A far better solution (and one that I advocated as "Modest Proposal II" a few weeks ago) would be for everyone in that situation to file for bankruptcy (chapter 7 or 13, depending on your situation) the same month. They would either (in chapter 7) get their debts wiped out entirely or (in chapter 13) get a 3- to 5-year repayment plan, but for only the principal -- in other words, the credit-card companies would find their interest rate lowered to 0.00%, and, in some cases, the principal reduced as well, by court order.

[Jeep789]

10. They rarely go to court

(although I have heard they were doing it more frequently these days) and they would only get a default judgment if you didn't show up.

[regnaD kciN]

30. It depends on your financial situation...

If you have no real property, and a low enough income that garnishing wages would only earn them a little bit, true. If you have a house, say, they will definitely do so and demand that your house be turned over to them.

And, by the way, anyone in debt should be aware of the following: in most states, the statute of limitations is seven years. Even if the original credit-card lender decides not to seek a court judgment right away, they can and will sell off your debt to one or another collection agency, which can then seek a judgment themselves, any time within the statute of limitations. And, it gets worse -- in many states, if you unwittingly admit you owe the debt (say, when called by the collection agency), that resets the statute of limitations, so that they have another seven years to take you to court.

In other words, those who figure that "they haven't taken me to court, so I guess that's not a problem" may well be in for a very unpleasant surprise in the next few years.

[RebelOne]

28. That happened to me. I had to file a Chapter 13.

[Sebastian Doyle]

4. We can easily make this one a "bipartisan" issue that the right wingers will be happy to support

We must put an end to corporate usury because God says so!

[depakid]

11. However, that would require Democrats to forego their own dirty money

which for the past 15+ years, they've been loathe to do.

On consumer issues- Democrats have betrayed their constituents time and time again- and show little indication that they're going to change their stripes.

[elizfeelinggreat]

6. It would be better if the government mandated lower interest

rates, especially now that the "bail-out" money can be used as leverage. 37%? That's horrifying!

I agree with you that the finance companies seem to make getting out of debt much harder for those who are already struggling. Putting a cap on interest rates for credit cards would be a very popular move on the part of the Obama Administration and I'm sure the companies taking advantage of the disadvantaged would be having heart attacks over it. All the more reason, huh?

Those payday-loan places need to be taken to task also, every time I see a commercial for those I think they are preying on the desperate and should be better regulated.

Our country seems happier tsk-tsking those who find themselves in financial trouble instead of giving a helping hand and some realistic financial aid. We have allowed these corporations to out-shark the loan sharks. :(

A movement to put the face of shame on those who do this to others would go a long way in our country to replace the notion that corporate greed trumps all.

[SoCalDem]

15. We need a "set" interest rate ceiling for loans of all kinds

or people just will not borrow, and that's what keeps banks successful..

House loans should NEVER be over 8% (ideally at 5%)
personal signature loans should be 10-12%
car loans for new cars should be between 6-8%
used cars....8-12%
credit card interest should be 10-15% (to DISCOURAGE the over-use of them)

BUT the flipside to this should be interest PAID on savings..

regular savings 2-3%
CDs 4-6%

[ihavenobias]

46. Agreed. n/t

[question everything]

65. Have you forgotten the early 80?

When the federal interest rate was raised to contain inflation?

We had a mortgage at 14% and the following year we moved across country and mortgage rates were at 16.5% that we decided to rent, instead.

You have to let banks charge a certain percentage about prime, otherwise they will not be able to function.

People should be responsible to know what they are getting into and banks and credit cards should not dangle offers of credit cards with "pre-approved" amounts that have no relations to the income and assets of the borrowers.

And some people will always default on their loans just to be assholes. I remember in the 70s I knew someone who was not going to pay his student loan. Why? Because he thought that this was his right, or because he was just a jerk. There are always anarchists, on DU, too, who think that screwing any institution is their mission in life. The rest of us, then end up paying.

Banks and credit cards raise interest rates on the rest of us when too many are delinquent.

[SoCalDem]

67. Our mortgage loan in Denver was 15.625 %..can't forget that nightmare

:)

to your other points.. banks USED to have lending standards, and will again..soon..

not paying a student loan these days is quite risky :)

[MISSDem]

25. Why don't we just demand that the government tell them

to give us the stuff we bought for free. Forget about fooling with a lower interest rate on what we bought and promised to pay for.

[elizfeelinggreat]

27. wth?

[SoCalDem]

7. How dare they?

They do it because the laws allow them to, and because people want "stuff' they don't have incomes high enough to afford readily, and they are willing to suspend disbelief long enough to whip out that plastic, and turn into Scarlett O'Hara, who will worry about it "tamarrah"..

[busybl]

64. when people got these cards the rates were normal

but the reps managed to get that miserable bankruptcy/cc bill passed so the companies could raise rates willy nilly, You can get money from the mob cheaper now.

[leftstreet]

8. But...but...only BAD people use credit. They should pay!

obligatory:

:sarcasm:

[Raskolnik]

12. No one is saying that only "bad" people use credit cards, but you've got to admit

that, as a whole, the U.S. is wildly irresponsible when it comes to their use.

[leftstreet]

17. No, as a whole, the citizens of the U.S. are grossly underpaid

Employers are wildly irresponsible in compensating us for our labor.

[Raskolnik]

19. False dichotomy, and irrelevant to boot.

U.S. workers can be underpaid and still use credit cards irresponsibly. The former does not necessaritly negate the latter.

[leftstreet]

40. Actually it's relevant. But I'll give you props for spelling 'dichotomy' correctly

:eyes:

[closeupready]

76. It's true that some Americans use credit cards irresponsibly, but the larger burden

is upon credit card issuers to do due diligence and not to lend irresponsibly.

[Raskolnik]

9. I agree that people's *use* of 22-37% interest rate credit cards is bankrupting the country. n/t

[PCIntern]

18. Well, when my payroll was due

and had NO CHOICE but to bounce paychecks or use the card, which do you think that I did?

and when the supply bills came in faster than the payments...

and when the taxes were due and the alternative was to have liens filed against me...

etc.

[Raskolnik]

23. So it sounds like the credit card saved your ass in those instances, no?

Listen--I'm not defending high-interest lenders. More often than not, they are guilty of some bad behavior in this economy. I understand that they can be crippling, and result in a viscious circle of debt. However, you've got to acknowledge that for every example of someone using a high-interest credit card to meet their payroll or keep the electricity turned on, one could likely find dozens of examples of people who used a high-interest credit card to buy a tv, an expensive pair of shoes, or to take a trip. We've used credit really, really irresponsibly in this country, and that bill is coming due now.

[PCIntern]

34. Yes,,,

and it's not all shit that was bought by lots of folks....education expenses, medical/dental bills, etc. It's not all consumerism...but much of it was.

[nichomachus]

48. Many people have no choice

Most people who get in serious trouble do so because of medical problems. If we had universal single payer health care, much of the problem would disappear.

[Raskolnik]

57. I don't think you can substantiate your argument of "most." n/t

[ArbustoBuster]

74. Actually, nichomachus is right.

Most people who get into deep trouble financially do so because of medical bills. Medical Bills Leading Cause of Bankruptcy, Harvard Study Finds: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2005/bankruptcy_study.html I believe that bankruptcy can be used as a fair indicator of a family's deep financial problems.

[jobycom]

14. Yes. People have so much money tied up in repaying debt that they cannot continue

to drive the economy through purchases.

It's not a question of responsibility or blame, either. Those in debt got their knowingly, just like someone who chooses to borrow from a loan shark. Credit card companies haven't exactly operated under good faith rules, though, arbitrarily raising rates and using deceptive practices to force late payments and to trigger non-compliance clauses to raise rates higher.

Placing blame is a useless tail chase. The bottom line is that any effort to revive this economy by improving the lending market or giving a pittance in tax cuts is doomed to failure as long as people are paying a quarter or more of their disposable income making monthly payments that barely reduce their debt. Until that is fixed, this nation will not recover.

The feds need to work on this. Debt forgiveness or a grant to pay off credit cards is out--no one needs to be rewarded for their own bad decisions, that's not fair to the people who made better choices--but capping interest rates, or giving a tax deduction for credit card interest, or some other idea that encourages lenders to lower interest rates needs to happen, or all the rest of the money being tossed around like iceburg lettuce at a salad bar is being wasted.

[elizfeelinggreat]

21. Why should those in CC debt be held to higher standards than the

bastards who used our bail-out money to throw themselves parties?

I know you'll say you didn't agree to that either, but the government still did it. Medical emergencies and losing a job are just two examples of the ways I've read on this board that people get in over their heads - those are not bad decisions, IMO. Those were circumstances beyond their control. Just because you didn't lose your job or face dying doesn't mean you made a better choice.

I don't mean to jump on you but your answer struck me as very uncaring and not well thought out. I do not think we need to encourage lenders anymore, I believe we need to step in and stop the hemorrhaging we're reading about.

I am referring to this in your post:
"Debt forgiveness or a grant to pay off credit cards is out--no one needs to be rewarded for their own bad decisions, that's not fair to the people who made better choices--but capping interest rates, or giving a tax deduction for credit card interest, or some other idea that encourages lenders to lower interest rates needs to happen, or all the rest of the money being tossed around like iceburg lettuce at a salad bar is being wasted."

[MISSDem]

29. Medical emergencies and/or losing a job are reasons

for making sure that you have an emergency fund.

[elizfeelinggreat]

31. I don't think you understand the meaning of emergency.

Try growing some sympathy and rereading the OP, it might help you understand.

My emergency fund is adequate (so far) but I am capable of seeing outside my own situation. Have you been a Democrat very long?

[MISSDem]

35. I've been a Democrat for about 64 years, as long as I have been here.

Being a Democrat should not mean that someone owes you something. Credit card debt is something that we choose and we are honor bound to repay it at the rates we signed on for. If I am not mistaken, in the agreement that one signs when one gets a credit card it is stated that the interest rate can change.

[elizfeelinggreat]

41. Hey, that old personal responsibility only goes so far

when you're asked to pay for years on a purchase and then ham stringed by life or haven't you read anyone's story on here about their misfortunes? I hear the old republican theme of "punish them" coming through in your posts.

I guess I cannot help you feel compassion for those less fortunate if you don't want to; perhaps if you thought of their situation as similar to your thread about losing your investments (they invested in their future by thinking they could pay it off and that didn't work out either).

[MISSDem]

45. I don't think that being required to pay your bills is exactly a

"punish them". That is just ridiculous. People have too much credit card debt because they are living beyond their means and want instant gratification. I have been there and learned the hard way. You have to fund an emergency fund even if you only add one dollar a week to it. Eventually you will get there. And don't accuse me of being a conservative. I am a yellow dog Democrat except when it comes to outright irresponsibility, ie, I am a fiscal conservative as we all should be. There are no free lunches, credit card or otherwise.

[elizfeelinggreat]

53. Free lunches? YOU said that.

I never said one word about free anything! Try reading what I write all the way through.

I objected to the horrendous interest rates and thought there should be action taken to cap them. I asked you to consider not everyone deserved to be labeled as you are insisting on labeling them!

"People have too much credit card debt because they are living beyond their means and want instant gratification."

You can't see helping people who have faced misfortunes and found themselves over their head in debt? That really does sound an awful lot like Pat Buchanan or Ronald Reagan to me, not like President Obama who is trying to help people find a way to manage their mortgages.



And la-de-da for having "learned the hard way" as if you deserve to judge others who have not been so lucky. That's right, LUCKY. You are not so special, you're lucky, but you obviously don't want to know that. 37% interest is not fair in any way, shape or form. Have you no social conscience?

I know I'm lucky but I also know that was just fate, my father died at your age and I would have run up a million credit cards to have been able to treat his heart before it killed him (had I known)and if they tried to charge me 22-37% interest I would find it obscene.

Maybe someone else will want to take you on but I don't know that you'll ever see anything but your own view. Enjoy patting yourself on the back and I hope you live a healthy life and don't have to go through what those less fortunate than you have experienced.

[redqueen]

54. ...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=5147566&mesg_id=5148795

[noiretextatique]

61. hi redqueen

:rofl:
those asshole poor children and their asshole parents who don't fill out forms...they don't deserve no stinking FREE lunch. let them eat cheese sandwiches!

if obama rescinds the "conscience rule" for health care providers that will take away their religious freedom.

if you can't pay your credit card bills your a deadbeat looking for a FREE lunch

i'd better add this for clarity
:sarcasm:

the :hurts: is thick today

[closeupready]

77. "Personal responsibility" "Personal responsibility" "Personal responsibility" Personal responsibilit

Yeesh. :rofl:

[Leftist Agitator]

69. At a dollar a week, it will only take you 20 years to save $1040.

At 5 dollars a week, you'll have $5200 after 20 years.

"Eventually you will get there."

Bullshit.

[jobycom]

71. Why should be people in credit card debt be given money for getting themselves in debt?

And just so you'll know where I'm coming from, I'm in more credit card debt than you would believe, and not likely to get out in my lifetime, barring a winning lottery ticket, and a lot of that debt, tens of thousands of it, came from emergencies. So don't act all high-and-mighty. I'm exactly the type of person you are describing, and a lot of it wasn't even my fault. Between hurricanes, disabled parents, alcoholic siblings, mentally ill siblings, my own children's health needs, and even a sick pet that cost more than I realized she would, I reached my limit about forty thousand dollars ago.

On the other hand, I spent a lot on graduate school, and when I had some money, I went to DisneyWorld and ate out and went to movies, and all the normal stuff. Nothing extravagant, but certainly not frugal. Those were the choicees I made, rather than saving. If I had saved, I wouldn't be in this debt.

Those who made the right choices, who saved so they would have the money in the emergency, don't owe me a trip to Disney World. Frankly, I want to pay my own debt, I don't want anyone else's money. But the government needs to reign in the predatory rates and the crooked business practices that trigger those rates. People need to be given a chance, at least.

As for the emergencies that trigger such debt, the government needs to handle those emergencies better in the first place. Health care, elder care, a responsible FEMA, better jobs training and education systems. Lots to talk about there. But this is about credit card debt, not about what else the government should be doing.

[elizfeelinggreat]

73. High and mighty? Not me.

I think you misunderstood.

I said:

"Why should those in CC debt be held to higher standards than the bastards who used our bail-out money to throw themselves parties?" That was in response to all the judging going on here. As you said placing blame is a useless tail chase but I'm really sick of seeing it fall so often on those least able to help themselves. Your personal experience is not universal.


And yes, I do know that some people used their credit unwisely but that still does not excuse the exorbitant interest rates. There are plenty of better business practices that could be used, such as freezing the credit line and working out payment plans. That is if the goal is really to pay off the debt and not just to create more accounts receivable.

[closeupready]

78. Because there's a lot of such people, and they aren't spending on things that drive the economy

but on credit card payments. A population in such financial despair makes it much harder for an economy to grow. It ISN'T fair to those who were responsible, but it's ALSO not fair that each taxpayer has essentially loaned the TARP banks $40,000 each. That means the government is billing each taxpayer $40,000 in order to bail out irresponsible banks, to be paid either now or by their children.

[ComtesseDeSpair]

16. They're bankrupting ME, that's for sure!!!

We need usury laws again!! No interest rates over 10%. It's time for the people to fight back!

[MISSDem]

20. How about a more novel idea of paying the credit card off every month

and then we won't care what the interest rate is. And we would be living within our means.

[ComtesseDeSpair]

22. Easier said than done!

When you don't make enough money to build up any savings, you have no choice but to rely on credit cards for emergencies. My credit cards were completely paid off a couple years ago. Then a series of bad luck hit me - car repair bills, various injuries to my pets, medical bills, emergency trips home to see my ailing father, etc. The next thing I know, I'm buried under the debts again, and the huge interest rates are designed to keep me buried forever.

[TwilightGardener]

43. Shit happens. We've paid off our credit cards, put balances back on, paid them off again,

put balances back on, paid them off... that's the way it goes. Don't feel bad, all of us run into rough patches. I have debt, too (though not credit card debt at this time--paid those off yet again)--that's what a mortgage is, that's buying a car, having kids and pets who need things, going back to school, fixing up an old house, etc. Life is expensive, and unpredictable. I wish you luck crawling out of the hole.

[ComtesseDeSpair]

60. Thank you for understanding!

Most people on here condemn me for falling into debt and tell me how stupid I am.

[jpljr77]

24. How about simply not using credit cards? n/t

k

[regnaD kciN]

33. Wonderful idea, IF...

...you don't have any credit-card debt at this point. (In that situation, I would strongly suggest you hide your cards in the freezer, keeping them only to maintain your credit rating, and live "pay as you go.")

However, the people in trouble here are the many who are already in such severe debt (not helped by the credit-card companies jacking up the interest rates and monthly payments on them) that, even if they were to cut expenses to the bone, stop using their cards at all, and send every spare cent in on additional principal payments, they would have no realistic hope of paying them off in five years or more.

For them, being told "don't use credit cards" is about as useful as telling a pregnant teen "it's simple -- stay a virgin until you get married."

[blues90]

49. I used a few cards back 4 years ago

And it was to buy a few power tools to build wood working projects to try to increase my income then that did not work out because of poor timing in this economy so I sold all the tools and paid it all back to the cards but in the mean time they increased two cards min payment to double what it was and raised the interest rates and not for late payments now I'm in a bind but it was not for luxury items or new clothes of a TV of any sort of item which was over reaching. I've paid back the actual debt now it's all interest on top of interest. Then I lost my job which was another un-foreseen event. Then my detal insurance was changed and I had to pay high co payments just trying to save my teeth and now after that they tried some root canals , charged me even though once they found out a root was bad and then charged me to remove the tooth so now I lost all the teeth i was paying to save. I have only two molars left.

Sure I did it but who knew the rates would go up and so fast , if I had I would have never used the cards . They were low interest at the time.

Now I don't have a job and am on disability and fear I'm screwed. I really don't have anything left worth feeding a fire. I still drive a 1973 car and always bought thrift store clothes and furnature.

I called the creditors and they said I've been paying , I know but I can't now so what can we do here and all I got is well you have been paying so we can't help you. I worry about this daily and all night for years now. Now somehow I have to face the music which at times sounds like a hose attached to my exhaust pipe.

[TwilightGardener]

66. Your last sentence is very alarming.

Please, if you are seriously having such thoughts of despair, call someone, call a family member, a neighbor, call a hotline, call your church if you have one--there has to be someone who can help you out, whether financially or emotionally.

[MadHound]

32. How about this, pay off your debt, cut up your card, and go to a cash/check/debit card basis

I've never had a card in my life, and contrary to the claims that one's life can't be fully lived without a card, mine and millions of others have indeed lived a rich full life. Don't have to worry about interest rates, fees or ID theft(well, not so much). Believe it or not, but just within the past couple of decades most people lived their life like this. Somewhere in the past ten, fifteen years many people got this idea that they've got to live the lives of the rich and famous, and since they were neither, they put it all on plastic. Now we all get to pay the price for that foolishness.

Instead of continuing to feed the beast, starve them instead. Drop out of the credit rat race, you won't regret it. For example my credit score is high, my finances are well budgeted, and my life is a lot simpler and stress free simply due to the fact that I don't have a credit card.

Do yourself, and everybody else a favor, cut up your cards now.

[uppityperson]

38. I use mine for dental/health bills. I am getting to the point of pulling teeth though.

health insurance should cover dental as if I get an abscess, it is a health issue. Or if I only have broken teeth, that is a health issue also. I am ready to start pulling my teeth soon rather than fixing them, due to the cost. This is pretty much all I use my credit card for. I know I "should" have several thousand in savings to pay for health emergencies, but trying to get that when am barely making it on what I make is nearly impossible. Having been low income/low outgo for yrs, difficult to come up with a stash of cash.

[regnaD kciN]

39. Well, goody for you!

:sarcasm:

See my note above. The problem is that most people who are having problems, even if they "cut up their card(s) and go to a cash/check/debit card basis" are so deep in debt that they can't pay off their debt, even dedicating every bit of income they have to it, for years. Smug, self-righteous advice like yours, however beneficial to those just starting out in the world, is of no use whatsoever to those who are already struggling to make monthly payments (even without using their cards any more), and have just been informed that JPMorganChaseCapitalOneCitiBankOfAmerica has just raised their rate (on existing debt, mind you) from 15% tp 29.99%.

[MadHound]

42. If you want to have a discussion, try not to be an ass about it

First point,

Second point, most people who've started threads on the subject of credit cards generally state that they pay the balance off every month, or shortly thereafter, therefore they're not so deep in debt that they can't pay their bills off, they're just irked that the credit card companies are increasing the money they have to spend in order to spend money.

Third point, if you are so deep in debt, then there comes a time when you need to stop digging, and that means that you need to cut up your cards(to prevent yourself from going deeper) and work out a payment schedule that fits within your budget.

[ComtesseDeSpair]

62. Well, isn't that special?

What do you do when you have an emergency - like, let's say, a dog hit by a car - and you have to come up with $2000.00 NOW (because asshole vets won't take installment plans) and you have $20.00 in the bank and live paycheck to paycheck? And you have no rich family or friends to borrow from? Don't make it sound like every credit card user is some irresponsible idiot with a big screen TV and a new car. I have holes in my shoes, holes in my pants, a 30 year old 20-inch television set. I don't live outside my means - but shit happens!!

[Kansas Wyatt]

36. And where is the Democratic controlled government on this issue?

Did I miss the hearings that our Democratic government has planned for this sudden jump to loan shark rates?

Any Democratic politicians out there? Anywhere? Can I get any Democratic Congressional Aid out there? Anywhere at all? Hello?

Oh I see, they don't care, because the Credit Card Companies have promised not to break any legs. But Credit Card Corporations drastically adding to someone's misery and financial hardship, while accepting Government Bailouts, is okay. I see how this works... It's just a matter of legalizing thievery.

WELCOME! WELCOME! WELCOME, TO YOUR NEW CORPORATE GOVERNMENT STORE!
Formerly known as The Company Store.

[Cleita]

37. The good news is that Congress is preparing to write and debate some new

usury laws according to Bernie Sanders this morning on Thom Hartmann.

[elizfeelinggreat]

44. Hooray!

Good news and some hope for those in trouble, thanks to Senator Sanders!

[nichomachus]

47. Well, most states do have usury laws -- and they enforce them

They enforce them not by going after the people who charge the high rates, but by refusing to go after the people who don't pay. The state's position (in most cases) is that the loans were illegal and can't be enforced.

I was talking to someone who had worked for a payday loan company which just went out of business. They made too many loans to people who couldn't repay them and the courts wouldn't go after the people who didn't pay because the rates were usurious.

HOWEVER, credit cards companies -- thanks to massive bribes to each wing of The Corporate Party -- has had credit card loans exempted from usury laws.

[Ilsa]

50. Mine is 12%. It is tied to Prime (P + 9 or something). But rates

that high (over 15%) are ridiculous, IMO.

[Chrisssy]

52. this goes the very hard of the problem, credit card practices are a modern form of slavery

[Raskolnik]

58. That is a ridiculous amount of hyperbole, and insulting to what actual slaves endured. n/t

[leftofthedial]

55. the failure of median income to rise meaningfully and consistently over the last 30 years

has led to an unsustainable reliance on credit cards by much of the population.

The usurious interest rates brought to us in no small part courtesy of Joe Biden are an outrage and a huge problem in their own right.

[Common Sense Party]

56. No. The interest rates aren't bankrupting the country. The debt loads

we carry have bankrupted the country. The massive overspending, overconsumption, living beyond means lifestyle of the average American...coupled with the no-spending-is-too-much, deficit-loving morons in Washington who couldn't balance a budget if they tried.

[Mike 03]

59. Mixed Feelings. Of course, those rates are ridiculous. But who is buying anything for these rates

unless they are paying them off monthly?

On Edit:

As absurd as these rates are, what is even more dangerous to the country is individuals purchasing goods they can't afford at these rates, knowing they won't repay the debt anyway.

[busybl]

63. I've always paid on time

and the other day Capital one send me letters changing my interest rates from 16% and 18% to 29.8%. god, I hate them.

[Jello Biafra]

68. Here's one of those times....

for participatory democracy. We all need to write our elected officials and flood their snail mail/e-mail boxes and demand that this s**t needs to cease. Write Lou Dobbs...he loves these types of stories...Michael Moore...he does too...

Note how this is NOT covered in the M$M....hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm....what's in your wallet?

[JuniperLea]

70. Dude... this is sacrelig...

You better live up to your screen handle... Jello is my GOD!

LOL!

Cool choice in monikers:)

[TwixVoy]

72. NO - Having the card IN THE FIRST PLACE is bankrupting it

our entire economy was based on deficit spending by consumers. It doesn't matter if the damn rate is 1% or 50% APR - it is an unstable element. The higher rate simply accelerates the problem but it in NO WAY CAUSES IT.

[spinbaby]

75. Have you seen what they're PAYING?

Our checking account earns 0.19% interest. How are banks not making money?