California the Deadbeat

The political and economic conditions in California have degraded so much that now banks won’t accept the IOUs that state government is using to “pay” people. That’s good. If they continued to do so, California would have effectively created its own paper currency, backed by nothing but ineffective politicians. Read more

Fool of Credit Card Finance – Reader Report

I just have to pass on this “fools of finance” anecdote sent to me by observant reader Clifton:

I  saw something yesterday that you might find interesting.  My wife and I had taken a short mini vacation to visit some old friends in Las Vegas.  We went to a Wal-Mart there to buy some snacks and ice for a road trip, and wound up waiting in the checkout line behind a very interesting lady.  She was probably in her mid forties, and did not speak English very well.  She was purchasing about $90 worth of assorted household goods, including makeup, some shoes, shampoo and lotions.  What was interesting was how she paid for them.  She produced a total of 7 credit cards, of which 3 were apparently maxed out and cut off.  After many attempts by the checker to put amounts on each card, she finally managed to put the purchase on 4 of the cards.  What I wonder is how anyone would loan this woman a nickel, let alone $90.  I bet she couldn’t get a loan from a family member, but apparently there are 4 banks out there willing to loan her money.  Sad but true.

This “fact is stranger than fiction” report reminds me of the hotel check-in scene in the movie “Best in Show.”  (Hilarious movie BTW) The hotel had declined all of the credit cards that the couple checking-in tried to use. The wife insisted that she had a “good” credit card to present because her payment on that card was only one month overdue. How about that as the new test of credit-worthiness? Maybe the woman at Walmart is proud that, out of seven cards in her purse,  a majority still had some spending capacity available.

The woman in Clifton’s report and the foolish companies that issued her credit cards deserve each other. On the other hand, don’t you wish that the check-out person at Walmart had said something sensible, such as “Are you sure you need to be purchasing shoes and make-up right now?” Or, “May I take some of these cards to the shredder for you?”

Keep these stories coming, dear readers. We can all learn from the tragic yet humorous mistakes of others.

Image credit: The Truth About

Fool of Family Finance – Dean H.

I have decided to introduce a new “money and behavior” category. I am calling it “Fools of Finance”, in honor of our fellow citizens who act foolishly in their handling of our money (e.g., politicians) or their own money. When they make their money mistakes in a very public way, Mr. ToughMoneyLove believes it becomes fair game for commentary by others. If you throw me the bait, I’m going to take it. Read more