Originally Posted by
tandempower
But you could take the same people and give them big loans and they would be much deeper in debt, but then they would just turn into middle-class people. You don't seem to understand that many middle-class people are poorer than poor because they go into debt trying to get out and stay out of poverty. It is sad but true. Many are just poor people pretending like they have more of a future than they do. They feel bad about their situation, so they go trade their car in and hope a new car will be the first step toward getting out of debt, when it is really a further step into deeper debt.
Yeah, we middle class folks can certainly be financial dummies at times (I lump myself into the dummy
category). Unless one develops the appropriate disciplines (which I have failed to do), making more money does little to alleviate the feeling of being strapped for cash. As we make more money, the impulse is to spend more money (something that I am trying to work on). Among my largest expenses are automotive ($700/mo between loan payments, fuel and insurance) and fast food. It is my hope that through my experiment in car-free living that I can eliminate or seriously curtail the first. The second will require me to build a different set of habits which will feed back into the car free part.
Speaking of spending money...
pursuant to earlier parts of my conversation I have purchased another bicycle (and found a new home for the single speed). I found a shop called Two Wheel View that is a non-profit outreach of sorts that refurbishes used bikes with kids. Between the bike itself and the parts (sturdier pedals, lights and fenders), this unit cost me right around $250.
I have attached pics of both the new bike and Ol' Black Beauty.
Ol' Black Beauty:
The "new" bike.
