Remember the old joke about the three biggest lies in the world? It started with “I’m from the IRS and I’m here to help you.” I will leave it to your memory to come up with the other two. Well, perhaps we now have the fourth greatest lie… consumer protection from credit card banks.
For those who still have a credit card chances are the credit line has been lowered and the interest rates have been raised within the past few months. The credit card banks are scrambling to milk the consumer for all they can get before the new consumer protections for credit cards go into effect.
According to the latest reports many Americans have turned to debit cards in lieu of credit cards. The jump in debit card use is phenomenal. It is estimated that debit card usage is up 70%. But, before you swipe the debit card and punch in that PIN code you better be aware of your account balance. The overdraft fees for the debit card can actually end up costing more than the interest on the credit card.
For those who may have believed that bailing out the banks would help the man on the street, think again. While American taxpayers footed the TARP bill expecting to be paid back… and some banks are paying back the TARP funds… the banks have shown no remorse for their deceptive actions. In fact, as we bailed them out of one mess they were spending their time trying to figure a way to keep us in debt.
If you have any doubts, please watch The Card Game. It can be viewed online or check your local listings for its airing on PBS’ Frontline.
Then, get rid of your credit cards and always know the balance in the account linked to your debit card before using it. Americans can live within their means. For those of us who are still steaming over the bank bailout, we can have a major effect on bank profits by not being lured into their fee games.
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