Reply #28: The fact that some people are unwise in their use of credit is more of an indictment of [View All]

[bertman]

those people than it is of bankers, IMO.

No one forces people to take out loans. Yes, I know that many banks have made credit too easy to get for some of us who are irresponsible in our personal financial lives. They've made lots of money doing that. That is a disservice to the public. HOWEVER, in many instances it's the result of people being too ignorant of good financial practices.

I know people who only operate on a pay-as-you-go basis. Rare birds in this world. But they do it and they live well. They are frugal and pinch every penny. They don't try to keep up with the Joneses, rather they make spending decisions based on "need" more than on "want". I also know lots of people who have loans for their homes, vehicles, and various other things like credit cards, but they have planned their finances well so they are not overburdened. So, what does that say about the rest of us who are overextended? To me, it says that we need to rethink our personal financial attitudes. Many of us have been too foolish or blind or blase when we should have been focused on our finances.

Is that the fault of bankers? No. Did they benefit from it? Hell yes. Does that make them evil? No.

Most of us make choices about our livelihoods at some point in our lives. If we are able to go to college we decide we want to be teachers or doctors or scientists or geologists or bankers or social workers or whatever. Some of us go for the jobs that make lots of money. Some go for the jobs that give them the greatest personal satisfaction. Some go for the jobs that they feel are most secure. If we can't go to college, we also make choices about our jobs. Do we want to be a day laborer or do we want to become a carpenter who learns his trade well enough to become a business owner or a superintendent? This stuff is all about individual decisions. So is the decision to borrow or not to borrow.

For many decades borrowing was a very positive and uplifting thing for Americans to do for themselves and their families. Now, for many of us it has gotten to be an addiction. Does that mean it's bad for everyone? No.

As far as your derision of the term "credit-worthy", that just shows your bias against the use of credit. Shackles to you are the keys that unlock another man's chains.