Remember when you got your first credit card?

I recall that my first credit card was an American Express and had either a $500 or $1000 dollar limit on it. It was almost like a status symbol of sorts because a lot of people did not have a card and could not get one. Little did I know that I would soon move on to harder stuff.

Not long after came a Visa card, a Master Card, and finally got a Discover card. It didn't take long to max them out if you were a common working man in the 1980's and 1990's. You discovered that you could pay off American Express with your new Visa Card and when that was maxed out, you discovered that you could pay off the Visa with your new gold Master Card. You could now get $25,000 of the clean stuff.

Just when I was ready to go into withdrawals, a new dealer came into town with the best stuff ever. I could re-finance my mortgage and pay off all my bills, including all my credit cards. It was the mainline rush I was looking for.

All this time, my wages had stagnated. My employer just did not feel the need to give the same raises he did in the past, especially after the Carter inflation and the deep Reagan recession. So the credit cards and the mortgage re-financing provided the money I was looking for and that I needed.

Unfortunately, in September of 2008, the dealer got busted. I could no longer get any more easy credit. I could not re-finance my home because it was worth less than what it was when I previously re-financed. It was cold turkey time.

The last I heard, the dealer was back on the Street and making more money than ever. He served no time. He left millions of people desperate and hooked on his stuff and he walked away smiling...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMqVrUSz62o