I don't think that education is a 100% solution. Part of the problem with personal finance is that a lot of these financial products were not available in much of the country 25 years ago. What college student in 1985 had access to $100,000 worth of financing and a credit card on top of that? What's more, there are new products being pumped out more quickly than a public education system is capable of keeping up with. The people who are doing the educating are either pushing these products or charging a premium for their financial expertise. I do propose that basic personal finance is a key component of an education, because it might not solve the issue completely, but it will engender a bit more caution and prudence when it comes to credit devices. An outdated, shitty education about this stuff is still better than none at all or worse, what the sales twat on commission is telling you. People won't and don't spend logically, and the ads have a lot to do with that. "Retail therapy" is a real thing, something that is caused at least in part by the scope, prevalence and power of advertising. The advertisements tend to fuck with people's priorities, so that you have someone with a $3000 worth of Polo shirts and Jordans that has their lights turned off on the 13th every month, or a student that has a $2000 Macbook but $12 for groceries for a month. That kind of misplaced priority is bad for anyone who doesn't own Apple stock, because we all pay higher incidental costs to subsidize the bills these fuckups don't pay. The extent varies, but I think it's common(at least once) to wish you could return that video game, pair of shoes or wicked cool authentic ninja sword to help cover some more necessary expenses like food, electricity and rent.
I just saw this ad and thought "Holy fuck, this is incredible." Break down the messages in this one guys. Watch it in full screen.
Personally, I find the new JC Penney campaign with Ellen DeGeneres hilarious. "ZEEper?" Binder and Binder? Not so much.