1. CASH OP ED 1
America, Cash Is King
By Whitney Westbrook
Citizens of America—we have a problem. A big problem. Yes, I’m talking to you. We want
what we want, when we want it and we will stop at nothing to get it. We don’t even let the fact
that we do not have the money stop us—thanks to the help of a little plastic card called the credit
card.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have made a mess with our credit cards to the tune of $880.5
billions dollars of debt in the U.S. We spend and spend until one day the Visa, Master Card, or
American Excess—I mean Express—bill comes in the mail. You open the bill, ripping the
bandage off quickly, and see the average U.S. credit card debt amount of about $15,000 staring
up at you. Many questions race through your mind like, “Who put $15,000 on the Visa?” and,
“What was so necessary to spend that much on?” After calming down, you come to the
realization that it was in fact you who spent that money in the heat of the moment when that
Deluxe Grill was calling your name, despite the fact that you don’t cook, much less grill.
The U.S. economy is reaching $300 billion in debt and simply cannot handle any more of
our spend-happy habits. Therefore, I propose we start taking the advice of New York Times best-
selling author and financial leader, Dave Ramsey, who’s financial advice promotes ways on being
wise with money by only spending money that we have. We need to listen up when Ramsey
advocates that, “Cash is king.” The many benefits of cash can help us, the good people of
America, to quit heavily spending and slowly make our way out from under the massive pile of
credit card debt that we’ve gotten ourselves under.
The average American consumer owns about three credit cards, allowing them to spend
without having to be financially responsible. We think, “It’s not really my money anyway,” but
forget that one day we get to pay that credit card back, but this time with a 13.01% average
interest rate tacked on. Suddenly, that steak dinner we charged on the card doesn’t seem to taste
so good. To avoid further debt, Dave Ramsey advocates only spending the money we have. With
cash, what you have is what you get and if you don’t have it, then you don’t buy it. Simple as
that. Cash keeps it easy to track how much we’ve spent and what we have left. What you have is
what you get. If you don’t have enough cash with you, you can always resort to your debit card,
which pulls money from your bank account—money that you actually have.

2. CASH OP ED 2
Credit cards take away the pain-factor when it comes to spending, which must be why
credit card debt is the third largest source of household indebtedness, following the mortgage and
student loans. When your card is swiped, it doesn’t register that this money is still indirectly
coming from your pocket, whether it is paid back now or later. However, when you spend cash,
it hurts! You form an attachment to your hard-earned doe and thus think twice before spending
it. Spending less by adopting cash over credit does not mean a drop in consumer spending. What
it does mean is that you can buy things and support the economy without adding another penny
to the country’s or your own debt.
So America, I believe that we can be wise with the help of Ramsey’s, and other financial
leader’s, advice. We can save and spend our own money without depending on borrowing
money through a credit card. Using cash may mean breaking old habits and budgeting with the
money we have, but I believe this is a step in the right direction of lightening the burden of
consumer debt on this country.
References:
1. "The Good and Bad of Carrying Cash: Does It Really Pay?" Daveramsey.com. Web.
27 Oct. 2014. http://www.daveramsey.com/blog/good-and-bad-carrying-cash.
2. Chen, Tim. "American Household Credit Card Debt Statistics: 2014." Nerd Wallet
Finance. NerdWallet, Inc. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.
http://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/credit-card-data/average-credit-card-debt-
household/.
3. Skowronski, Jeanine. "National Credit Card Rates for Oct. 23, 2014." Credit Cards.
Bankrate, 23 Oct. 2014. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.
http://www.bankrate.com/finance/credit-cards/rate-roundup.aspx.
4. Becker, Joshua. "10 Reasons to Escape Excessive Consumerism." Becoming
Minimalist. Web. 27 Oct. 2014. http://www.becomingminimalist.com/escaping-
excessive-consumerism/.
5. "Press Room – Frequent Flyer Facts." Frequent Flyer Services. Frequent Flyer Network.
Web. 27 Oct. 2014.

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http://www.frequentflyerservices.com/press_room/facts_and_stats/frequent_flyer
_facts.php.