Sound familiar?

From the New York Times:

Given a Shovel, Americans Dig Deeper Into Debt

"Today the focus for lenders is not so much on consumer loans being repaid, but on the loan as a perpetual earning asset," said Julie L. Williams, chief counsel of the Comptroller of the Currency, in a March 2005 speech that received little notice at the time.

Try the New York Time's debt calculator to see where you land. It's a little scary as it's a picture of where we are as a nation right now thanks to the free rein we've given the credit card companies and mortgage resellers.

States have quite a bit of responsibility to watch this store. What has the Republican majority in the South Dakota Legislature done from fleecing South Dakotans of their hard earned income? OK, they allowed us to cut up our credit cards when they change the terms. You're all heart, guys. What about the blatantly dishonest come-ons that we get in the mail daily, which prey upon those in the heartland that are pushed to the brink by uninsured medical disaster and high energy prices and depressed wages? How about some limits of any kind on interest? Nah.

Another reason to broaden the conversation in Pierre by supporting us some of them Democratic legislature candidates.