[quote=CA renter]
When you’re talking about debt used for consumption, all they’ve done is pulled demand forward, and made it more expensive to pay for things. They have done us NO favors by forcing people into debt in order to survive. Those of us who try to live without debt are forced to pay higher prices because we’re competing with idiots who don’t understand that buying a hamburger today for $1.00 means paying $1.25 in the future, while still needing to buy more burgers in the meantime.
[/quote]

I’m curious. What are you not able to purchase today for what you deem to be a reasonable price that you would like to be able to purchase?

To use the example at the root of this blog, if you’re willing to stay put for several years, buying a house right now, given current interest rates, is quite reasonable. In fact, historically, the monthly cost of owning a house is below the historical median. So, I will assume that housing is not the issue it was for you (and me and most others here at the Pigg) five years ago.

I agree that we have too much debt. But I’d also point out that not all debt is bad and, in fact, a decent portion of it is reasonable give the intended uses. (Although I’ll agree that a lot of consumer debt – particularly revolving credit card and HELOC debt – is not good.) But, when you state that, “They [The Powers that Be?] have done us NO favors by forcing people into debt in order to survive,” this seems more than a bit extreme. Who, exactly, can’t “survive” because they’re unwilling to take on debt?