You, and The Credit Card's Triangle of Debt

Its a review about this product

Credit Card Nation The Consequences Of America's Addiction To Credit (Hardcover) Credit Card Nation is a scathing, pithy,concise indictment on our consumption- driven society, a society in which the average savings rate is now MINUS 1-3% (!),the smallest savings rate of ALL the other "1st World" countries.
Corporations hold sway in Congress, regardless of who is/are in power.. Why, for example, would Joe Biden do his best to slam the Bankruptcy Bill through Congress, ridiculing all opposition ? Perhaps because Mr.Biden's greatest contributor is MBNA, one of the largest credit card companies in the country ,situated in Deleware, Mr. Biden's home state.?..But, then, credit card companies were among the largest contributors to Bill Clinton as well as to George Bush as well as to Al Gore , as well as to... so that no matter who "wins", they win. Brilliant !
Rigorously disciplined as a sociologist, Mr. Manning weaves a fascinating historically researched tale of cause and effect, combining many complex issues into one comprehensive whole. This is a monumental achievement of simplicity,done with humour, tact, and scrupulous research.
Credit card companies and their allies, the banks, have done their best to discredit Dr.Manning's research, with little effect,( except perhaps for a few canned reviews, like the one from Publisher's Weekly, which thinly veils the fact that the writer never read the book! )Up to now, it is unimpeachable,and it stands, not one comma displaced.
Who would benefit from this book? Everyone: Millionaires, students, bankers, housewives and husbands,those starting out and those planning retirement.Unionized workers should be among those who should take the greatest interest in this book, as well as those planning their financial futures.
It is important that we all know how our lending institutions work and WHY they work that way, their incentives and their disincentives to change. It is important that we all know how this evolved over time, fueled by the junk bond craze of the eighties, and the enormous profitability of the short-long-term debt of credit cards, coupled with the repudiation of our Puritan's frugal heritage, and its concommitant restraint.
Why can students without jobs get credit cards while retirees with impeccable work and credit histories cannot? Some of the answers to some of these questions may be discussed on Mr. Manning's informative web site: Creditcardnation.com. As the economy slows down, it can only be surmised as to what the upcoming freefall will produce, for unlike what lenders may like us to believe, the vast majority of borrowers do not go to Las Vegas or to Milan, nor are they frivolous in their expenditures. They pay (and pay and pay and pay )for unexpected items such as a car repair or a Hospital stay, or a divorce..
Mr. Manning's book in no way is a how-to book to repair one's credit, but it surely will go a long way to making so many complex issues comprehensible today, and fun to learn !
Even though this is a highly readable and amusing book, it is also teeming with a massive amount of information. Any chapter could easily emcompass several volumes, at length, and only one chapter is devoted to college age debt.
As both the Republicans and the Democrats are eager to hear from Dr. Manning,perhaps some consumer friendly legislation will result. For those who think that this is a book about student debt, you haven't read the other nine chapters...
Since this book is not just about credit's place in our society, but rather about the underpinnings ,fibre and structure of our society today , and how it got to be that way,I can only say, like so many before me, ( Was if first Heroditus ?) that those who fail to learn from history are doomed to charge their way through it.
To me, this is likely to be the most important book in this first decade of the 21st century, and it will become increasingly so, as the economic situation worsens.
As our parents and grandparents drummed their litanies into our heads of a penny saved is a quarter earned, and save for a soggy day,it is also true that taking care of ourselves, our families and our communities requires forethought, knowledge and patience. We could also use a good road map !
I believe that this book leaves you well on the road to fiscal responsibility; it may even effect policy in Washington... A timely book of great substance, written with tenacity, integrity and humor ! May it inspire us to take up our financial crosses and walk ... with zeroed balances on our credit cards- the only and quickest no interest loan in town ! Amen.