disconnection leads to debt

Quick: how much credit card debt does a normal household have? Nope, guess a little higher. Close: around 8,000 dollars on average! What is happening to us?

Look at how we handle our money. Online banking, credit cards, checks. Cash is a distant dream. We charge 2 dollar packs of gum, write checks for 4 dollar cups of coffee. Even checks are becoming inconvenient, with the introduction of checking cards. And now the companies are coming out with faster and faster ways to spend your money. You don't even have to sign your name anymore, just flash a magnetic strip.

But this can't be doing us any good. Money is turning into nothing but numbers on a website. It's lacking so much tangibility that we're losing any grip on it. Think about it: you're holding some bills in your hand. A twenty, a ten, maybe a couple of ones. You have to count it to buy anything, you have to separate it and hand it over. You can see the monetary value right there. You hold it, feel it. It's quantifiable. Here's an example: a digital clock vs. an analog. On an analog, you have this metaphorical vision of time, where you can physically see the space between the numbers, how much time you have. It feels different than a plain numbered digital clock, where all the guessing is in your head.

The easier it is to spend money, the more money we spend. Hey, we're Americans! Capitalism rules, right? But putting us further into debt isn't helping anyone. We're not in debt because we have more money or even more to buy. We get into debt because it's so easy to spend money and so hard to keep track of (if you don't have a really convenient online banking system). We're buying everything online, even getting loans on the internet. And you can even get your debt consolodation online! Then you're just feeding the monster even more!

So back to clock metaphor: some people can tell time just as well on a digital, and still are never late to anything. The analog clock is dying and the answer isn't to revive it. We just have to learn how to gauge time on a digital. Put in a little effort, and you'll always be on time.