During the hay day of credit card largess, it was a common ploy for the credit card companies to extend your credit limit. Did that mean you were obligated to charge more? Of course not. Did most people take advantage of the additional credit? Yes they did. Will the government take advantage of the opportunity to borrow more if the debt ceiling is raised. Probably. Remember, the government is made up of people just like  us.

Reaching our debt ceiling is not the same as defaulting on our debt. When you reach the maximum on your credit card, what do you do? You stop spending. You have no choice. But what about this threat that our credit rating will be lowered and consequently it will cost more to borrow money, not just for the government, but for all of us. No loans for small business to expand and hire more employees. Sorry, but hasn’t that been true since the economic crisis began? Has anyone mentioned that our government’s biggest creditor, China, has already lowered our credit rating as of  last year?

Personally, I say a pox on both of their houses, Republicans and Democrats alike. Are they just trying to divert our attention from the fact that the economy still sucks? That people are still out of work in large numbers, and that the  housing market is flat.

You may say that I don’t get it, that I’m simplifying the issues. Hey, what can I say, I’m a little bit simple.

Sharon

That college course began a love affair with economics. I never followed my professor’s advice, but I never stopped being passionate about the subject. Maybe because I realized early on, that economics drives just about every decision we make, every action we take.  We have finite resources, and how we choose to allocate them is what economics is all about.

If I buy one dress instead of another based on the price of each dress, it is an economic choice.  My behavior is informed by my choice which is based on the finite resource of my bank account or credit card limit.

Don’t worry that every Friday’s blog is going to be wearisome. I hope to explore theories about economics I have developed over the years, and hopefully bring the subject to a discussion level where we can talk about practical things.

We are in a particularly bad place right now economically because of the choices we have made on an individual level as well as on a governmental level.

So let’s explore and see where we can take this discussion. I welcome input on this one, because I am in no way an expert, just an interested student of the subject.

Sharon