Would life be better without credit cards?

Some people certainly think so.  After all, credit cards have encouraged unscrupulous spending for so long, that they’re (at  least) partially to blame for every cardholder unable to pay the debt they racked up.  In fact, some even go so far as to suggest that the only way to handle your finances smartly is to do without credit card entirely.

The Need For Credit

Whether you like it or not, we live in a credit economy.  Businesses get their supplies and usually get a 30 or 60 day window to pay it.  Seldom can people afford a new car or a new house on the spot and will frequently use loans to fund it.  How many college graduates - doctors, lawyers and scientists - would have finished school without credit?  Credit, for the most part, enables us to acquire what we need now, instead of having to save up for it over many years.

Responsible Credit

Credit is good.  It’s what we do with it that puts us in jeopardy.  According to statistics, 7 out of 10 consumers live paycheck to paycheck.  If those 70% of individuals took on more credit card debt than they should, chances are, their finances will end up in ruins within the next few years.

It’s not credit cards, nor any other forms of credit, that we should eschewing.  What we need is a proper education in personal finance.  If you forget all the rewards and rebates, the convenience of credit cards alone is enough to warrant its widespread use.  A life without credit cards should make it eliminate one avenue for people to mess up their finances.  However, a consumer base that isn’t financially savvy will continue to make mistakes that put them in jeopardy - whether they own credit cards or not.