It's pretty hard to miss the debt crisis coverage right now. It's plastered all over the news- online, on TV, and in print. The discussion about whether or not we raise the debt limit, what happens if we default, and all the back and forth rhetoric between parties makes for pretty good news. My question in this case is simple. Is this news? Hardly.
American's like to spend money. Even more American's like to use credit to buy the things that they want and lots of it. Who hasn't seen a report about soemone who is in over their head in credit card debt? Who doesn't know someone who is in over their heads in credit card debt? The bottom line is that the national story is no different than the same story many American's have played out for years. How to borrow from Peter to pay Paul and how long can I get away with it? How can I get more credit to get more stuff?
When it comes time to pay up it hurts. It hurts when it's an individual who has been living beyond their means and has to go on a financial diet to get out of the red, and it's going to hurt for the country to get out of this situation. As any credit counselor will tell you there is a easy formula- make more, spend less. It works to get individuals out of debt and it will work for our country too.
So, I guess the answer is a quick no. It's not news. What would be news is if all the people who didn't like the national debt situation would take a look at their own finances and practice what they are telling the government to do. Make a budget that allows the debt to be paid off and then don't get back into debt.
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It's especially not news when we've spent the last three years hearing about how leveraging yourself beyond your means is the direct cause of the housing market crash and the decline of the economy... Perhaps if we didn't treat it like news, they'd stop bickering and figure out something in the best interest of the country. Maybe?
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