Handing Out Credit Cards

In the run up to the enactment of the mislabeled Bankruptcy Reform Act, I spoke and wrote frequently about the irresponsible lending practices of credit card issuers. I said card issuers passed out credit cards like flyers at a political rally. I thought it was a figure of speech.
Well, darn if it isn’t true: on Mother’s Day, I bought my mom a gadget at the nearby chain electronics store and was confronted between the shelf and the cash register by a man wanting to sign me up for a credit card earning “points” to spend at the store!

The clientele of this store is generally a whole lot closer to high school age than to my age, and markedly less likely to be financially stable. Yet here was a guy who wouldn’t let me pay for my purchase without hearing his pitch for a credit card, so I could spend my way to discounted goods from their store. Finally had to tell him I was a bankruptcy lawyer and was fundamentally opposed to credit cards. But you can bet the next young person he challenges may not see the danger.

So, back to the political argument: is our “problem” with bankruptcy irresponsible lending or irresponsible borrowing?

Popularity: 2% [?]