Is the cost of living artificially high to keep us in debt forever?

Answer 1

Yup. Wage slavery coupled with blind little piggy consumerism is an outgrowth of "company towns" in which employees of a company had to purchase everything they consumed from "company" stores, priced so that one could never get out of debt. It's the latest form of human husbandry among those who believe in social engineering. Ralph Nader tried to warn everyone.

Answer 2

Don't confuse cost of living with your personal consumer choices. You chose to live where you live, rather than move somewhere more affordable. You chose the car you drive. You chose to buy stuff with your credit cards, rather than save now and buy stuff later.

Also, what's so bad about being in debt forever? When used in moderation, debt is a lifestyle enhancer, not the three-headed monster you portray. Consider what would happen if, for example, there was no such thing as mortgage; people would have to save their entire lives to buy their first home by the time they are ready to retire...

Look at business, too; the average S&P 500 company these days maintains a debt/equity ratio of 1.2...

Answer 3

Depends where you live, I live in San Diego, rental prices are very high, although the people that live here are willing to pay for it.....


There is a level where where the amount of supply = the amount demanded.

Although some compaines control the supply level to keep prices near the highest point, so they can make a profit that satisfies them enough to stay in business. =Monopoly.


Cost of living such as rent, or a mortgage. We do pay higher rents/ or mortgages due to the falling dollar. When the value of the dollar falls the value of land increases.

The dollar fell because the government had to get loans from other countries to pay for the US debt....
We have a US debt because we paid alot of money for the war in Iraq. <-- We spent more money in the war then what we can earn as a nation in a fiscal year. Some say we can afford the war, but we have costs, so we cut costs/services and had a war, but we are in debt.

On an individual base, the cost of living expenses such as food, will rise even higher, because the higher price of gas.
Farms, and companies have dwindled their returns to keep prices stable, although we have a falling dollar, so the price we pay for food has a little value, and the cost to supply food is higher because of the rise in gas prices.

The new movie "Blood Diamond" <-- good to teach supply cost and demand price.

Alot of people are in debt, it is very sad, especially since the nation is in debt and the government. Our generation will need to pay higher taxes in the future to cover the cost of the war.

So we will have higher debts because of the cost of living increases, and higher taxes pay for this war+services+debt+interest...



Another post stated earlier, to get yourself out of debt, stop charging, stop accumilating debt.

Dont ever use your card or get a loan for something new, until your out of debt. Budget your cash, pay bills + pay allotment.

The way I like to do it for example:
If I have three cards, A=$300 B=$200 C=$100.

I pay minimums on all three.

And then I attack the one with either the highest interest rate, or with the tricky annual fee to close and then close the account if the interest is above 8%, and close the account with the annual fee.

If all cards have the same interest rate and no annual fee I go for the one with the lowest value, not the highest.

The trick is to decrease the amount of people you owe money too. Pay $25 minimum and $75 allotment
If I do that next month I owe A.$275 , B.$175 and C is gone.
In two months, pay minimum and $75 allotment. A,$250 B.$50
In three months A.$200 and B is gone.
Then I will have 1 card to attack and send a bunch of payments to it.

Hope this helps.
Also try, YF&B
http://www.suzeorman.com

Answer 4

If you think the cost of living is high, the solution is simple. Give up all the advances of the past several decades and live like they did in 1970.
No Internet
No computer
No cable
No video games
No cell phones

You will find, you will save a lot of money.

The big difference is the size of government today dwarfs the size of government in 1970.
Why does no one ask if government is kept artificially high to screw us?
.

Answer 5

I am not in debt. You are too young to think about forever. Pay it off. Get rid of the cards and buy only what you need. Then save for the rest. It is possible. You really do not have to have it all now.

Answer 6

No things are not artificially high but many of us choose to live artificially rich. We buy things we have no business buying. If people bought the least expensive stuff and refrained from buying stuff they could live without they would all accumulate great wealth in time.

Answer 7

No, that is governed by the federal reserve bank increasing interest rates.

Answer 8

now you are getting it