Little Folks=Big Spenders? Think Again

[LargoWinch]

Re: Little Folks=Big Spenders? Think Again

Cool. Someone is the banana king now!

[Verrocchio]

Re: Little Folks=Big Spenders? Think Again

More biased, crap reporting from the New York Times. This whole article is undermined by the above quotation. The assumption underlying the article is that living beyond your means is somehow acceptable behavior-- and that actions do not have consequences.

I certainly agree that the FIRE economy has stacked the deck against the working poor, but there is never any excuse for living beyond your means. When you have a job, you are supposed to SAVE MONEY for those times when you will inevitably be unemployed.

I cannot wait for the day to come when the New York Times ceases publication. There are good reasons why newspapers are collapsing-- they produce a crappy product.

If only those who lived within their means are to be spared from moral indignation, precious few would be spared (other than you, me, and some others from the iTulip community, I suppose). From my perspective, people who work hard for a better life for themselves and, especially, for their children are to be encouraged, not condemned. This lady went out on a limb -- the article doesn't say how far -- to provide opportunities for her kids. I admire people who work for a better future for their children and who are willing to take some risks toward that end.

Indeed, I should confess that I haven't always lived within my means, although these days I do. I've entered into many ventures in my youth where the outcome was less than certain. If things had gone south -- as they could have -- I probably would have been in greater financial trouble than the lady in the article. In hindsight, the risks that I took were sensible, but I shudder to imagine the difficulties that I would have faced if the outcomes had been different. Most people think some level of risk-taking is necessary for social, as well as economic, progress.

The article didn't give the details on how much credit card debt she had, so there's not much in the way of evidence that she lived beyond her means. All we have is maybes. Just maybe she was able to pay the balance due on her card each month (as I, and perhaps you do), then her car broke down or one of the kids needed something unexpected. Who knows? Maybe at the time she incurred her credit card debts, she was sure that she could pay them when they were due. Maybe she slipped one time and the credit card issuer stuck it to her with usurious rates of interest and outrageous penalties. Maybe she made a mistake. Who knows?

By the way, if your wish for the newspapers comes true, where should we get our crappy news after the papers collapse? Cable TV, perhaps, or maybe the Web?