America's Addiction

Having grown up in Reagan's America with all of the 'Just Say No!' crap pummeling my eyes and ears (and if I had been able to read braille I'm sure the tactile senses would have received it as well) a node clicked on my way to work.

America is suffering from addiction. There are pushers everywhere telling you to say 'Yes!' They are on college campuses giving it away freely. They are in the ghettos hustling every which way they can. The pushers of this new addiction are so bold as to advertise in newspapers, on television, on radio, via direct mail, using billboards, and even on the internet. So called experts say it is a good thing, go ahead and try it, everyone needs a little to lead a healthy lifestyle. It's not all that different from the golden days of cocaine where people touted it as a cure for just about everything.

I'm talking about credit. I am not ashamed to admit that I am a recovering addict. The easiest way to quit this addiction is to never get hooked. It starts with something simple like a credit card or a car payment. Before you even realize what has happened you are hooked, addicted, looking for every penny you can scrounge up just to support the habit. Right now I feel like I'm on the methadone plan. Slowly weaning myself off of the hard stuff just so I can get on with my life. The mail keeps delivering credit card offers. Every car dealership is guaranteeing me that I will be approved for a loan on a new vehicle. Computer companies and book stores say I can save money on my next purchase if I just sign up for their credit card today! They offer you a taste that can lead to a lifetime of debt addiction.

Take it from a recovering junkie, it's not worth it. The one time that everyone is telling you to say yes is the time you should actually be saying no. And at one point in my life I did hit what I consider rock bottom. I had creditors calling me, late bills piling up, and no way to pay for that one more fix that might get me through until the next billing cycle. So I quit. But it isn't easy to quit. I'll be going through withdrawal symptoms for some time. And I guarantee you that if I had never started, if I had never enhanced my lifestyle using credit, I'd feel far better about myself today.

Have you ever seen what credit does to people? What it can do to a family? It can ruin them. It can force them to live in fear of the dealers who got them hooked. They can lose their car, their furniture, their stereo, their house, and still the bastards will come after them for more.

Fuck Nancy Reagan! Take all the drugs you want. Just say NO to debt!