Credit Card Nation

The Consequences of America's Addiction to Credit

The author Robert D. Manning is a Senior Fellow at the University of Houston Law Center. What he does in Credit Card Nation is a remarkably good assessment of the debt culture that has slowly engulfed the people of America.

It is indeed shocking that college students as young as 18 are racking up thousands of dollars worth of credit card debt, even before they start working. According to Nellie Mae, the nation's largest maker of student loans, the average college student today has about $2,200 in credit card debt. When you consider that it takes about 12 years to repay a $1000 credit card debt at 18% p.a. on minimum monthly payments, the average American is in big trouble indeed.

By the time a young American graduates, he or she would have about $5,800 in debt on average. This figure is bound to climb once he or she enter adulthood.

What is happening in the United States is a very good precedent of what is about to occur all over the world. Credit Card Nation tells of good precursors of what to expect when you live in a society obsessed with consumerism, middle class symbols and unabashed debt.

While mass marketing strategies of credit card companies may be in part to blame, the main reason why the obsession with credit and debt has proliferated so much into society is the disillusion that people have about living a good life and surrounding themselves with purchases they otherwise cannot afford.

The 406-page hardcover starts by examining the history of credit cards over the past 20 years since the deregulation of financial services in 1980. Through real-life interviews, the author reveals how debt has and will continue to take a severe toll on society. An overall good eye-opener and read.