What if we all stopped paying our credit cards. Could we break those companies too?

[yurbud]

In all seriousness, since part of the bailout is evolving into requiring mortgage lenders to renegotiate rather than foreclose, maybe if enough of us just stopped paying, their pain would get Washington's attention, and force them to stop charging usurious rates of interests.

[villager]

1. kind of fun to think about, frankly, since they've been "breaking" us for years...

n/t

[napi21]

2. YES it would work that way EXCEPT.....there's NO WAY you'd ever get enough people to

all do it at the same time, and that's what would have to happen to ever make it work! If only several thousand people joined in, THEY'D be the ones to suffer, not the cc companies!

[sandnsea]

3. All lending companies are renegotiating

If people are having difficulties, are expect to, now is the time to contact these companies and try to get rates lowered, etc.

[pleah]

4. It would be fun to watch them squirm,

wouldn't it?! :rofl:

[magellan]

5. Or, if you can, use them and pay off the balance each month

They don't make a cent off you that way. Even better if you've got one of those awards cards...Then they have to give you something for nothing!

[slackmaster]

7. That's what I have been doing for seven consecutive months now

Stickin' it to the Man and saving myself a whole bunch of money.

[elizfeelinggreat]

9. They still make a percentage of each sale

Some (American Express and Discover I believe) get a larger percentage than others.

I always thought it would be fairer if a customer who paid with cash could have a discount equal to the credit card company's percentage. :)

[reggie the dog]

21. In Illinois

that used to be the case at gas stations, one price for credit cards, one for cash....

[Sherman A1]

12. Precisely

This is as close as you can get to beating them. I use them for everything (money that would be spent anyway), gas, groceries, telephone bill, car insurance and any other expense that I can run through them. Pay them off each month, take their rewards or rebates and redeem them for gift cards to help with holiday and birthday shopping for the nieces and nephews. I am not spending anything that I wouldn't have and it simplifies my keeping track of purchases.

[BonnieJW]

16. The term credit card companies use to describe

people who pay their entire balance off each month is "deadbeats." Because they use the credit card companies for free.

[grace0418]

18. I've heard that, and I love it! I truly enjoy screwing over the companies that have

screwed so many over for so long. I know they made plenty of money off of me in my younger years, so I don't feel an ounce of sympathy for them.

[grace0418]

17. That's what I do! I could pay cash for whatever I charge, but this way I get

American Airlines miles. I now have enough to buy two first class tix to New Zealand, and they haven't got a dime of interest from me. HA HA!

[reggie the dog]

20. I did that

From the time I was sixteen to today, in total thirteen years, I always pay off the balance at the end of the month, and thanks to a gm credit card I got a grand off of my pickup truck years back....

[HereSince1628]

6. I'll gladly pay you for a hamburger on Tuesday for a hamburger today

Been there.

[Quantess]

8. Some people already have stopped paying, but not out of spite.

Some people can't make their payments. It's part of the scenario of the financial disaster.

[Duke Newcombe]

10. Unvoluntarily, I'm already doing my part :)

Having a business slump will do that for you.

[RollWithIt]

11. sure, but good luck getting a loan for at least 7 years....

I'll take my perfect credit rating, ty very much!

[yurbud]

14. mine is already ruined because of student loans for a masters degree that I couldn't pay on...

most of the first seven years I TAUGHT college because I didn't make enough to pay it and my rent in the same month.

[Leftist Agitator]

25. You just made this Masters student with $80k in debt VERY nervous.

In this economy, I had doubted that I would be able to find a position that pays commensurate with my education, specifically, one that pays enough for me to pay student loans off and not live like a pauper as I have for the last nine years.

Now I know that I'm fucked.

:(

[yurbud]

27. Are you planning to be an academic? If not, you may be okay.

[Leftist Agitator]

28. " Are you planning to be an academic?"

:rofl:

Of course!

Do you think that I would be worried if I were in a technical field?

The last well-paid position that I saw that I will be eligible for with my Masters in history had 74 applicants, of whom 69 had a Doctorate.

That was at this little glorified community college in Nowhere, WV:

http://www.westliberty.edu

I repeat: I'm FUCKED!

:banghead:

[yurbud]

30. I teach part time at two different community colleges in California, but my income is gradually

creeping up to what a prison guard with a high school diploma would make.

[Leftist Agitator]

31. Liberal Arts degree?

If so, PLEASE tell me that your degree isn't in history...

[yurbud]

33. worse: creative writing

[CreekDog]

40. Doesn't John Yoo have a degree in that?

:hide:

[Mnemosyne]

13. I have no blots on my credit, but am charged usurious interest simply because

I am low-income.

How does that make any sense? How is it even fair?

I wish I dared to quit paying the bastards at Citi.

[anarch]

15. that is the credit card business model

you (and me too, for that matter) are their favorite kind of customer...because that's what they do: stick it to people who don't have money, and if at all possible make sure they eventually pay back at least double the amount borrowed, through compounded interest, etc.

Rich people don't need credit, and so are utterly useless to the credit card companies.

[Xithras]

23. It has nothing to do with being poor.

My household income is nearly $100k a year, I have a long and flawless credit history, and yet the interest rates on my credit cards vary from a Chase Rewards Visa with a $5,000 limit and an 18% interest rate to a Bank of America Visa with a $27,000 limit and a 23.99% interest rate.

Credit card companies are equal opportunity opportunists.

I have eleven credit and store charge cards, and the only one with a balance is my Home Depot card (I'm doing some repairs around the house). If you carry a balance, they will screw you every way possible. Rich or poor has nothing to do with it.

[Usrename]

26. Another deadbeat.

They'll be coming for you too. http://baselle.savingadvice.com/2008/02/02/deadbeats-be-careful-out-there_35078/

[reggie the dog]

19. great

but what message would that send to all of us who just live on the money we have instead of buying crap on credit cards? How much of the credit card debt is just there because of useless shit people didnt need? Then again how much is there because of food or medical bills...?

[MrsBrady]

22. they make money either way

if we pay, they make interest

if we don't, they sell it as a loss to a collection agency and/or write off the loss from their corporate taxes.

[formercia]

24. Pay it off

The interest you pay is their income.

Credit: The gift that keeps on taking.

[Irish Girl]

29. I refuse to use credit cards

People always think I'm crazy but I haven't used a credit card in quite a few years.

[Leftist Agitator]

32. Far from being crazy, I would argue that your decision is an intelligent one indeed.

Credit Cards are BULLSHIT!!!

:mad:

[Greyhound]

34. Don't worry, it's coming. The CC bubble is most likely to be the next crisis,

followed by the derivatives.

Watch very closely and you will find a sneaky little poison pill concealed in one of the "emergency measures" that SoT will take over the next few months that will make it impossible to get out from under CC debt. These jackals are not stupid, evil but not stupid, they know full well that a large portion of the CC debts cannot be paid as wages continue to be further suppressed and inflation gets too severe to be hidden as it is now.

Why do you think "Bankruptcy Reform" rip-off was pushed through?

[rcrush]

35. Do like Fight Club

[Greyhound]

36. Yet another server reset, sorry.

[On the Road]

37. If Enough People Refused to Pay,

It could indeed break the credit card companies. And since most are issued by banks, it would destroy the banking and financial system quite effectively.

Of course, on a personal level, you would still owe the money with interest, ruin your credit ratings. On a broader level, you would be unable to borrow money, which would eliminate most gainful employment as well.

Or you could work to sponsor a reasonable maximum on credit card interest. Your call.

[yurbud]

39. of course the latter is preferable, but what would make legislators act on it quickly?

[4lbs]

38. I haven't used traditional credit cards in about 6 years.

Instead I have a separate VISA checkcard account from my main checking/savings, in a different bank.

Whenever I need to make online purchases or payments with it, I transfer just enough money to cover the transaction from my main accounts to the VISA check card account and do my online purchases/payments.

This way, even if the VISA check card number gets stolen due to hackers or whatever, the most they'll ever steal from me is $5.00 or so.

[MadHound]

41. Better yet, pay off your credit cards, then cut them up and get out of the credit rat race

Even if you use them for purchases that you pay off completely each month, the CC companies are still getting their slice from the merchant who allows you to charge.

Pay them off, cut them up and go to a cash/check/debit/checkcard lifestyle. I've been using cash and checks all my life, with a debit card for things like rentals, etc. I've never had a problem, my credit score is very good, and I've been forced to live within a budget.

The use of credit cards has gotten really insane, starting about ten-fifteen years ago. Our society has changed from regarding credit card debt as something to avoid to something that is normal. We really need to recapture that former attitude.