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Fucked Up College Kids File 190
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= F.U.C.K. - Fucked Up College Kids - Born Jan. 24th, 1993 - F.U.C.K. =
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FREE DEBT, NO SYMPATHY
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Written for F.U.C.K
(2/10/95)
I could not imagine what life would be like without a credit
card. I usually only carry around twenty dollars in my wallet
and charge just about everything over ten dollars on my credit
card. Who wants to waste time walking into a gas station-I just
use my credit card in that pay and pump machine. Writing checks
take too much time and they always ask for identification plus it
is a pain to carry around a checkbook. I only use checks to
order stuff through mail and pay bills-why get bogged down in
stores writing checks? It surprises me to see so many people
using checks when credit cards are accepted almost everywhere.
Perhaps the reason a lot of people are using checks is because of
their tendency to abuse credit cards. Every once in awhile a
statistic comes out about how 75% of credit card owners carry a
balance (i.e. only pay the minimum). I am not sure of the exact
figure but it is ridiculously high and so is the amount these
people owe. "HELLO, HELLO, anyone home in there" is what I keep
thinking. These people are spending more than they can afford
and paying huge amounts of interest because they can't pay off
their balances. Before you start feeling sorry for people
like this let me tell you a true story about a friend of mine who
I warned early on about credit and debt.
Joe and I met freshman year in college-we were roommates. Joe
had an Aunt who saw him through college and made sure he had
enough money for food, tuition, and etc. I guess Joe felt this
was not enough and proceeded to get a job during his first
semester to help pay for college as well as have some extra
spending money. Joe worked off and on (mostly on) during his
five years in college. The sad thing is I don't believe he saved
a dime during his whole college working experience. He even
bounced a number of checks and he never wanted to ask his Aunt to
help bail him out (pride?). At the beginning of semesters Joe
had plenty of cash but by the end, without fail, Joe was
struggling to get by and often found himself eating just Noodles
because of his excessive spending during the first part of the
semester. This trend continued and in our final year I knew bad
things were about to happen when Joe had his Aunt give him the
years rent up front. Sure enough Joe's rent money ran out about
three months earlier than expected after he purchased an
expensive printer. Time and time again I tried to convince Joe
not to make such irrational and impulsive purchases. I only
succeeded in delaying those impulses for a few days-if that.
During most of those college years Joe had credit cards and was,
of course, always paying on debt.
All that working, his Aunts support and never once do I recall
Joe ever being debt free. On more than one occasion I told Joe
he better take control now or he will be in debt for a long time,
even when making thirty thousand plus a year. Don't impulse
spend, think it out, and definitely don't spend more than you can
afford. All the while Joe did not listen but at least he had
everything he wanted-right?
I can't remember the full details but I think Joe left college
debt free after a final bail out from his Aunt. This depleted
his college "expense" account the Aunt held for Joe but at least
Joe entered the working world on a good note.
Joe held moderate paying jobs (about $6 an hour) until he landed
a job in his field a year later. During this year Joe managed to
not only survive but to increase his material wealth and once
again go face forward into debt. A motorcycle, computer upgrade,
and who knows what else landed Joe about $5000 in debt before he
got a job in his field paying over $30,000. Things were starting
to look better-or were they?
Joe stayed at my house during his job relocation and my whole
family-especially my mom-talked to him about his finances. Maybe
Joe would take someone else's advice for a change? Well,
apparently not. He moved into an apartment, got himself a
girlfriend (who he later married), and his debt more than doubled
all the while.
It is now about a year and eight months since Joe has had that
high paying job. He is about $12,000 in debt and has a wife who
is currently not working. Most of the new debt went into the
ring for his wife, the rest of it went into his stomach as Joe
has gained 70 pounds since beginning work.
Too often I find myself talking to Joe about money issues-like a
trip of a lifetime to Las Vegas which would have cost him less
than $300 for four nights. Joe declined the trip saying he did
not have enough money. Yet, a few weeks later Joe purchased a
color scanner for around the same price he could have visited
Vegas!?!? Joe is not a stupid person either-he did very well in
college without too much effort. He, like many people this day
and age, are stupid on the financial side of things. Not to
mention he does not like to take good advice. I guess I'm just
as thick skulled trying to offer him advice again and again.
Maybe I need to use reverse psychology-tell him not to do
something when I think it will benefit him.
I hope you can learn a little from this story: Don't spend more
than you have, don't eat your way into debt, don't impulsive buy
expensive items if it will cause discomfort down the road, listen
to what people are telling you, and of course think things
through. A credit card is just a tool of the corporate masses.
Use it correctly and it will serve you well, use it incorrectly
and you will serve the corporate masses. Debt = Servitude. If
you take pay then you must obey and if you must obey they you are
essentially a slave. Get out of debt and have a choice.
Visit http://www.smart.net/~banneker and check out "Little Free
Press" for an interesting concept on how to become free of the
system.
Charge it,
Pallbearer
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