Cash Winners Vs. Credit Card Losers!

I will never understand people who use a credit card for everything!

AS for me, and my thrifty shopping habits: I always limit my spending to what I have in my bank account at the time (plus, as an avid saver, I always have extra cash when emergencies arise). Alright, alright … I kinda’ understand the “psychology” behind the credit card use: most people don’t feel as much of the pain of spending when they use plastic as opposed to cash…but I can’t understand this kind of talk: “I have plastic so I think I can afford more than I really can”. That just doesn’t register in my brain for some reason!

So you had a big balance on your cards (wasn’t too bright, you know)? You wanted to pay it back, but you were trying to make ends meet as well, am I right? Then when you got your credit card bill and saw the minimum amount due, I bet that very low amount enticed you to just pay it, and the extra money went towards other things like food and rent, correct? Did you answer “Yes” to all of these questions? Well then, fast forward a few years, and I also bet that you’ve finally figured out that instead of your ancient purchases getting paid off, your freaking amount grew out of control … now, when you finally look at the interest you’ve paid out over the years, you realize that it was as much as the original items you bought! Sound about right? Sucks, huh?

It’s true … credit cards are awful! Anytime you’re even a day late with payment, most companies will kick your interest rates up around 29.9% (and charge a late fee to top it off). Then it takes a very long call, navigating through the computerized system, and having to go up five levels of supervisors to get anything done (the first person you speak with is almost always too low on the totem pole to help you … those idiots are on the front line, so to speak). You can sometimes get the rate lowered again after spending about 45 minutes on the phone, but what a pain in the a@# … am I right?

Plus, if the credit card companies weren’t steadily jacking up the interest rates on people who have been paying monthly without fail to 30% for some unknown reason (outside of the card holder’s control, of course) maybe more people would be using credit instead, but this isn’t the way it is. It’s really a stab in the back in my opinion, because the people who bailed out these companies last year are being further bled dry due to unfair interest rates. However, what these thieving corporations aren’t realizing is that the face of consumer spending has certainly changed over the last year and a half, and they’re doing everything backasswards to keep up with it! Now, even the high end consumers (that are making a lot of money in this country) want a deal, and they’re not getting one.

Ok, at the very least, IF you are going to do the whole credit card thing, then do yourself a huge favor and only have ONE, because ONE is manageable and certainly ENOUGH (it’s when you have 2, 3, 4 or more cards that trouble begins to brew … I’m serious about this one). I’d also recommend that at income tax time if you do have any unpaid cards then use your refund to eliminate as many debts as possible, and then cancel out those cards so you can’t rack them up again once they’re paid off.

I’d also recommend dumping a s@#tload of cash into your bank account when it’s “pouring” into your life, so that you have enough to get you through the times when they turn off the faucet (note: those guys are notorious for doing this at the most inconvenient of times … like when you’re broke for starters)! This should be the only cash relief you really need, so forget about how the Joneses roll (those showoffs are retards) … you’re much cooler than them anyways!

I really hope that I helped at least one person in this world today, by showing them that credit cards are a freaking rip-off … most of the times (I’m not kidding … in the least)!