IF you are in a particularly evil mood and wish to torment another living creature, you can do this. Get a cat, a laser pointer, and a wall. Some assembly required. Plus you get the added exhilaration of manipulating the cat in a way known only to the gods of Olympus. Finally, you are able to show your superiority over the lesser beasts of the field.
Once you have mastered the art of moving the red dot up the wall and across the floor, you may grow tired of cats. You might want to move up the food chain to the most noble of beasts: humans.
People like to hear or read uncomplicated things. Understand that while the tool might be different, manipulating people is not that much different from cats. The cat does not have any comprehension of how the pointer works and is only interested in the red dot. With people, the laser pointer is replaced with a word or two. That is particularly true about anything involving money.
Everyone can understand what “Low, Low Payments” means. When it comes to debt amortization, “low, low” is incredibly good and obviously should be taken advantage of at all times. What could possibly go wrong with having a new television set or especially a shiny brand new car? After all, it’s “low, low payments” time.
For the past few years, it has been said over and over that Americans just do not have any savings to speak of. The political agenda narrative has been that this is from the fact that the Trump administration economy is so terrible. Excerpt from Forbes.com on January 6, 2016 before Trump took office: “63 percent Of Americans Don’t Have Enough Savings to Cover a $500 Emergency,” “Around 25 percent of US adults say they have no emergency savings at all.”
In 2012 the US household debt to GDP was 80 percent and it has fallen now to 75 percent, which is a reasonable change. But the savings rate has been constant at about 7.5 percent. But do not think that the household debt is for buying food and toys for the kids. In 2012, 80 million had an automobile loan; in 2019 that number had risen to 116 million. The average balance due on car loans is $32,480 at an average interest rate of 8 percent.
So now that the brown stuff hit the fan, “A new survey [June 3, 2020] finds that Americans regret their lack of emergency funds to withstand the economic crisis caused by the pandemic. The Bank Rate survey found that 23 percent of Americans rate that as their biggest regret.” And you thought your cat was not very smart for following the red dot.
The younger generations may be incredibly “woke” but not when it comes to money. “Not enough emergency savings was the top financial regret for millennials (24 percent) and Generation X (25 percent).” But you have to give all these “rich” Americans praise for knowing what the problem is. “When it comes to getting finances in order while moving forward, the top financial priority was paying down debt followed by saving more for emergencies.”
Did your cat even hit his head falling off the wall and decided chasing the red dot was not such a great idea? He is smarter than the average American consumer.
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