Quote From: weirving Carlena is a real, genuine, over-the-top piece of work, but something Dr. Phil told her is inaccurate. I know this is a bit off-topic, but I feel I can't let it stand.
Dr. Phil said that every time Carlena whips out her VISA card for something, knowing in advance that she hasn't the means to pay the bill, it means that that retailer has that much less money to pay their employees, to pay their light bill, their rent, etc.
That is NOT true. I have been a retail store manager and I can tell you with authority that WE got paid whether the customer paid their bill or not. Once that charge was approved, we knew we got paid, PERIOD. If the customer couldn't or wouldn't pay their VISA bill, that was the bank's problem, not ours. That security is what the bank charged their outrageous fees for. We paid the bank a percentage up front, whether the customer actually paid his bill or not.
I have another perspective. Some years ago, I got hurt and couldn't work. I had (and continue to have) lots of out-of-pocket medical expenses that my pitiful excuse for insurance wouldn't pay for. I and my wife borrowed a fair amount in order to make a major move across country so I could go to graduate school. My wife works, so for a while we were continuing to struggle along. But eventually, we had to face the fact that we were in over our heads.
We declared bankrupcy. That went against everything I was raised to believe in and I felt guilty about it for a long time. But later on, I got out my calculator and did some figuring. Since the federal government has relaxed or eliminated regulations on what banks can do, and states have repealed usury limits, banks have had essentially a license to steal. Bank fees have skyrocketted at many times the rate of inflation, and interest rates for consumer loans (credit cards), which used to be a reasonable percentage above the going prime interest rate, skyrocketted to anywhere from 7 to 20 TIMES the prime rate.
Over the time we were struggling to pay our bills, we paid the equivalent of the principal borrowed - several times over. No, we didn't pay the entire interest amount we were contracted to pay. But those fine-print contracts that few people without a law degree can read keep changing all the time. Banking is the only industry where one can sign a contract and a party can simply change the deal, without notice and without recourse of the other party. And of course, they always change the deal's terms in THEIR favor, not the customer's.
One can argue that the banks have to overcharge everyone to make up for all the deadbeats like Carlene and I. Not true. The amount of profits banks make in fees and usurious interest cannot be justified by the relatively small percentage of "deadbeats." To underscore my point, the SAME BANKS that got "stiffed" when we declared bankrupcy were among the first to offer me credit cards again just a couple of years after we went bankrupt! Despite our bankrupcy, these banks made thousands in profits from us over the years and THEY WANTED MORE!!
Of course, we have changed our behavior. We are no longer so young and no more do we think we are immortal and invulnerable to injury and sickness. Our main mistake was living under the assumption that our income would be continuous and growing. But calamaties and disasters happen. And bankrupcy is a way to keep from drowning and get a chance for a fresh start. But don't weep for the retailers. And for God's sake, don't weep for the banks.
Ironically though despite inaccuracy the societal damage that someone like Carlena does is probably even worse than what Dr. Phil stated. People like her are the ones that the people who support the banks point to when they put in new legislation to hurt large numbers of Americans. I also predict that all the debt in the economy will in a few years(maybe not even) lead to the next Great Depression. There is also a huge amount of societal damage caused by excess consumption.
Don't even get me started on the banks. Let me say, get your money out of the big banks and into a credit union. Location alone is often enough to be able to join a credit union. By the way Japan recently passed a law limiting interest to 20 percent (still usury, but at least not limitless). The United States need strict laws against usury. Even charging small amounts of interests bank could still make plently of money. The largest banks have more money than almost any other corporations.
(Original Air Date: 10/20/06) Do you spend money frivolously, or do you hold on to every cent? Katie says when she and her husband, Joe, were dating, he wined and dined her, but when they got married, he became so cheap that she had to buy her own wedding ring, and he refused to take her on a honeymoon. When Katie lost over 40 pounds and wanted to buy clothes that fit, she says Joe told her to just gain the weight back. Joe says he has to control all of Katie's spending, or they would end up in the poorhouse. Is Joe really the penny-pincher Katie says he is, or is Katie's spending the real problem? Next, Ericka says her friend, Carlena, has "caviar taste with a tuna fish budget," and that if she doesn't learn to control her shopaholic ways, she'll end up on the street. Carlena says she deserves everything she buys -- designer clothes, over 100 pairs of shoes, and the TV in her car -- even if she can't afford them. Carlena's spending has gotten so bad, she had to move back home with her mother, Leonetta. Leonetta joins the show via satellite with all of Carlena's possessions on her lawn. Don’t miss her shocking ultimatum to her daughter and share your thoughts here!
