I agree on one point with a previous comment here which said it's all common sense that's why I don't really watch Suze Orman; I also agree with the point of taking responsibility with one's finances hence I only use my credit card to avoid carrying wads of $$ for purchases when I go shopping, and I always pay bills in full to avoid interest.  Also been using credit card this way for more than 30 years with no probllem.  The thing that really miffed me was having to pay a fee to pay my bill (in full, on time) by phone.  I was trying to do this to avoid sending a bigger than usual  check in the mail because it can also be risky to do this.  And no, I did not shout at the teller because I know fully well that she is not responsible for the bank's rules - she's a mere agent of those fat CEOs who take advantage of consumers by creating and implementing all these fraudulent bank practices.  I don't have any sympathy for these big institutions that go under, but I hate that they have the nerve to ask to be bailed out for their own wrongdoings and crookedness.  They all deserve to rot in prison as far as I'm concerned.

Kahi, I know they charge for phone payments and it is nasty, but most don't charge for internet payments. If yours does it, change the card as most don't. The problem with these rules is that they are going to cause reduction in benefits for people like us who pay in full - fewer cashbacks for example, fewer rewards.

Regarding banks that go under: it's not CEOs that suffer when banks go under. CEOs earned their millions already. It's regular people like you and me - tellers, customer reps, programmers, database administrators, network administrators, etc. Most of unemployed in NYC now aren't CEO responsible for this mess - it's people who had nothing to do with it. Then there are bond and stock holders - regular people who bought bonds and stocks of these institutions. You probably own their stocks and bonds indirectly through the bond and stock funds in your 401K.  When Washington Mutual went under, all bondholders were wiped out. And then there are fewer banks and fewer credit available for businesses. Without credit businesses can't operate. I hate my tax dollars being spent as well, but the cost to our economy would've been much higher without it. The purpose of the bailout was to unfreeze the credit markets, not to help these CEOs.

Also, a lot of these institutions don't suffer for their crookedness but simply because they made bad investment. They bought mortgage-backed securities thinking they are buying a AAA rated commercial paper. These securities were rated AAA, and those who bought them really believed they were making a good investment. Wachovia went under not because it gave bad mortgages but because it bought a lending company -- bad investment decision. Citi bought a lot of mortgage-backed securities: their competitors were doing it and not doing it at the time would've put them at a disadvantage. In hindsight we know it was stupid, but in hindsight it's also obvious we should've sold our stocks last year. How many of us did it? Our rating agencies like Finch agreed with their AAA ratings well knowing that the models used seriously underestimated the risk. Then there is SEC that allowed 5 major investment companies to be over-leveraged. There are a lot of people who deserve to rot in prison starting with our SEC chairman Cox. You sound like a really smart person - I do suggest you read more about the causes of this crisis, all the stuff about mortgage-backed securities and credit default swaps and SEC role. Also mark-to-market rule that played a part as well. Certainly a CEO that made  a bad investment decision is still responsible for his decision - we are responsible for mistakes we make at work even if they are understandable. But again, allowing firms fail doesn't hurt the CEO. It hurts everyone including you and me. Even if we don't work for any of these banks.

Kitty, I'm very well aware of the myriad of causes that led to the financial debacle and economic crisis that we are experiencing at present and perhaps for a very long time. I also understand the ripple effects on us and the many hard-working, overly trusting people and even the innocent  bystanders when financial institutions go under.  That's why I am adamant that the  big fat CEOs who enrich themselves and the Bernie Madoffs of the world whose grand scale greed put people 's economic well-being and financial futures in jeopardy deserve to rot in jail.

The government is NOT going to stop the credit card companies from charging you to pay your bill over the phone or on their direct website.  Why you ask because the IRS does the same thing.  If you owe taxes and want to pay over the phone it is a $15.00 charge, so they will not stop this practice.  What you can do to avoid the charge is set up online banking through your bank account.  There is no charge for this through most banks.  They prefer you do it this way it is less costly for them.  The credit card companies don't charge for this either as it posts directly to your account when they receive the computer file from the bank.  I pay all my bills this way to avoid the cost of the stamp, the hope that the postal service will deliver the mail in a timely fashion and the accounts payable department will process it on time.  I have a friend that worked for a credit card company and they were advised in accounts payable to not process checks in a timely fashion so they could charge a late fee to the consumer.  As well as raise the rates of that costomer because they had a late payment.  I no longer use credit cards I only use a debit card.   I choose not to purchase anything that I don't have immediate cash for.

Another factor to consider on whether or not you can afford something is not just whether or not you can afford the particular product but whether or not you can afford that product and its accessories. Every product has what I call a  "product lifestyle" or the extra products and services you need to go with that product.

Consider a high definition television, for example. While the TV itself may cost $700 or $800 have you considered the installation cost that can easily run another $100 or the extended warranty that can run $50 to $200?  Did you forget to add the taxes. In Chicago, sales tax is over 10% adding another $70-$80 to your purchase price.

How about the wall mounts or  special cables you need to hook up a HDTV. Got a HDTV, how tempted are you to want to get the Blu-Ray video player to view high definition DVDs, or the better cable package to watch more channels on your high definition television?

Seldom is the product price itself the only cost you have to consider when making a purchase.

Dawn - Thanks for your input.  I use credit card to avoid carrying cash in my wallet but always pay bills in full.  I've been doing this for years and have not had any problem with my credit card company - YET! I do the same things that you do to avoid all the unnecessary/ridiculous charges that we consumers incur.  Unfortunately this one-time charge that I am paying is for a special offer of service that is payment deferred for one year with no interest which was charged to this particular bank.  And since I pay my bills on time anyway, I went for it because there is no interest and my money can sit in my bank for one year - sounded like a win-win.  Until when I tried to pay by phone that I learned there is a charge; if I pay online, the bank will not charge but my online orovider would (written in fine print on my bill).  So, I guess I will send my payment by snail mail way ahead of time to make sure I don't get late payment fee and ADIOS to this company.  I guess the bottomline is: CONSUMERS BEWARE!

My husband and I don't use any credit cards anymore. We max'd out but have

been paying them off. Why is Congress waiting until 2010??  People need help

now and the mortgage crisis and unemployment doesn't help at all. We are not

in a RECESSION, it is a DEPRESSION!!!  We have been thru recessions but nothing

like this one. I will be very glad when GWB, Henry Paulson and maybe Ben

Bernanke take a hike. PE Obama can not fix everthing all at once and it will just

take awhile. Congress  has to step up to the plate also. They give themselves bonuses like the rest of the Wall St. fat cats. This is becoming a third world

country and the enemy is laughing at us. They are smart, they are watching us.

How much more do we have to tighten our belts?  Our stomachs are just about

strangled. We are afraid of a revolution. People should start rebeling and not

sit there idly. Am I right folks?  I know we are.

just the rest of the Wall St. fat cats and the american people are hurting.

Kahi, this is the first time I heard that any online provider charges you for paying your bills. Maybe they talk about your paying for time you are online e.g. if you are using old dial-up provider or just paying for the service? Is it on your credit card bill? What is the exact wording? I think you misunderstood and what they mean is that whatever you are paying for the connection because your provider's charging you specifically for paying your bill is just plain impossible.

The reason it is impossible is security. You are logging to your bank account using a secure connection so whatever information you type is encrypted.Consequently your provider cannot see that you are paying your bills. Your provider has no way of knowing that you are paying a bill or how much. Anything else would be a serious security issue. After all your credit card info is part of the information being sent as well as your bank's info.

Another free option is autopay. I use it for my main credit card - automatic payment in full. It works great: they take the full balance of my bill directly from my checking. They normally do it on the very last day, so my money are on my account earning interest for the full grace period. Sometimes they even take the money the next day or the day after that, but I am never getting charged for anything as it is their choice. I've used it for  years and it worked great.

Dawn - good point about the government. Not using cards is a perfectly good choice. Nevertheless as Kahi said not everyone who uses cards is in debt or broke or spends more than he or she has. I've used cards for years and I have no debt at all, not even a mortgage. I also have almost seven digit net worth, down from 7 digits last year (ouch...), and it's all savings - I am a first generation immigrant and I had nothing when we came to the US. This is by the way the reason I have very little sympathy for people who max out their credit cards - except for those who had legitimate emergencies like medical. If poor refugee from the Soviet Union as I was and especially as my parents were could figure out how to use crecit cards without paying any interest, how come financially savvy Americans couldn't? As to being poo, we had $120 per person when we came to the US. My parents were in their 40s and didn't even speak English. My mother couldn't find a job for 2 years. Yet we managed and we managed without getting into debt. And when my parents got their first credit card they didn't read the fine print - they couldn't read English well enough - but they did look at the table that showed no interest if you pay full balance by the due date and huge interest if you don't. This is not rocket science. Also talking about poor - Mary Ann, my cousin in Russia has a PhD in engineering. She works 2 jobs, earns $500 a month and shares a small one bedroom apartment with her elderly mother. Before her father died, he lived in the same apartment and worked until he was 80. And when my mother was young, their salary run out before the end of the month and they lived the last days of the month on bread and onions. Yet they didn't get into debt. Of course I understand legitimate emergency, like an illness. But what percentage of people who complain about credit card practices got in debt because of medical bills and how many because they overspend?

"We are not in a RECESSION, it is a DEPRESSION!!!"

Depression = recession + deflation. We've had one quarter which showed deflation, but nothing like a deflationary cycle one would expect in a depression. Additionally, I don't seem to see bread lines anywhere... Foreclosures? Newsflash. House is not a necessity. If you bought one you couldn't afford, you really haven't ever owned it to begin with - your bank did. A flat screen TV is not a necessity either. Mary Ann, have you read about "the frugal family" of 7 that lives on 35K income, yet managed to pay off their mortgage and are doing quite fine. newsguru.newsvine.com/.../931781-frugal-family-of-seven-lives-debt-free-on-35000-a-year

Do you earn less than they do?

Kitty, The wording about potential online provider charges was indeed written  in fine print below the statement/bill that I received.  It was also saying that I need to contact my online provider to find out how much the fee will be.  Quite frankly, after I read this note, I just decided not to bother.  This is a one-time bill so I won't have to deal with it after I send my payment via mail.  My husband pays our  monthly utility bills through his bank and it works perfectly.  I think if you have a good,  and by that I mean reputable bank you won't have any problems.  I have to agree with you about  some people who are so reckless with their spending to the point where they max out their credit limits; ditto for people who buy more house than they can afford and go into foreclosure and buy all the luxuries that become necessities because let's face it: consumerism has consumed America!  So spend, spend spend to keep up with the Joneses, or better yet, outdo them even if it means getting into debt. My philosophy is if you cannot afford to pay cash, you really cannot afford it.  So, what do you do?  Save for it.  It maybe old fashioned but it works!  Then you won't have to rely on anybody for help.  History books say that America is a nation of immigrants. It became the  superpower and economic giant that it was (note the past tense) by dint of their hard work.  Now as Mary Anne says it's becoming or has become a third world country. Why is that?  Who's to blame?  What happened to the work ethic that once built this country to be the envy of the rest of the world?