http://www.paidtwice.com/2008/03/04/the-irony-of-debt/#comment-18715 emilyg Tue, 04 Mar 2008 19:32:15 +0000 http://www.paidtwice.com/2008/03/04/the-irony-of-debt/#comment-18715 It is ironic. A colleague of mine was raised in India, where the concept of credit was basically nonexistent. She said her parents saved for things then bought them. While I know credit cards can be invaluable, such as when booking a vacation or having a car emergency that you don't have quite enough money for, too many people abuse them. I think the problem is that people don't view credit cards as a loan -- they view it as money. And I think it's because parents and educators aren't teaching children about credit and how it works. Instead of teaching complex economics to high school seniors, I'm in favor of having a personal finance course that teaches them about insurance, taxes, credit cards, etc., so they go off to college with real-world skills. It is ironic. A colleague of mine was raised in India, where the concept of credit was basically nonexistent. She said her parents saved for things then bought them. While I know credit cards can be invaluable, such as when booking a vacation or having a car emergency that you don’t have quite enough money for, too many people abuse them. I think the problem is that people don’t view credit cards as a loan — they view it as money. And I think it’s because parents and educators aren’t teaching children about credit and how it works. Instead of teaching complex economics to high school seniors, I’m in favor of having a personal finance course that teaches them about insurance, taxes, credit cards, etc., so they go off to college with real-world skills.

]]>