The New York Times today has an article on the causes and effects of the growth in American consumer debt.
It’s a long, juicy piece with many points to make, but one quotation in particular snagged my attention: “One of the tricks in the credit card business is that people have an inherent guilt with spending,” Jonathan B. Cranin, executive vice president and deputy creative director at the agency, said when the commercials began. “What you want is to have people feel good about their purchases.” [emphasis mine]
There’s appropriate guilt, and inappropriate guilt. Inappropriate guilt causes needless ulcers and ruins lives. Appropriate guilt is another thing entirely: it lets us know when we are doing something wrong.
What’s wrong with spending money? Nothing at all. What’s wrong is spending money we don’t have on things we don’t need.
What’s shocking is that Mr. Cranin doesn’t seem to feel more guilt about what he’s been doing.
