Most Significant Issue
A fairly recent Saturday Night Live skit released a sketch called, “Don’t Buy Stuff You Can’t Afford.” It was a spoof about a couple who didn’t quite understand saving your money instead of just buying on credit. “If you don’t have any money, you should not buy anything. Hmm…Sounds interesting.” The wife sarcastically remarks. “Sounds confusing!” The husband replies. As funny as it was, it still made a great point. American’s have a problem with buying things on credit but not having the money for it. My financial literacy class always taught me to have an achievable goal and save your money. Ever sense I was a little child, I have been taught to save, save, save, and plan for any expenses I may need. My parents also taught me the difference between a need and a want. They taught me to only buy things on credit if it is a necessity like a car, college, house, etc. I try to always keep their advice in the back of my head, but I’ve noticed a different path that buying on credit provides. Buying on credit is a type of borrowing but you may suffer a grave price if you cannot pay back your bill in full each month. The nation previous to 1929 became caught up buying luxury items on credit and borrowing money to invest in the stock market. It seemed harmless enough, the idea was that one could repay the loan when they sold their stocks and because of so much buying, people were making a lot of money. Stores were selling plenty of goods which in turn made the stocks rise. But at some point, all good must come to an end. People could no longer buy things because they had spent all of their money trying to pay off their enormous credit. Inflammation started which lead to the start of The Great Depression. (1) The most significant event that shaped America into the nation it is today was the stock market crash. Although there are potentially numerous