Recently, a friend travelled to Europe. She brought her credit card with the expectation of putting all of her purchases on it so she could keep track of everything in one place and not have to carry around cash. It makes financial sense to do that (as long as she pays off her credit card when she gets home, of course).
But she was surprised to discover that many stores do not accept credit cards. That is simply NOT the case in North America where almost every business has a credit card machine.
If businesses in Europe don't need to accept credit cards, should we accept credit cards here? There are a few reasons why European businesses don't accept credit cards that don’t necessarily apply to North America: First, Europe is made up of many small nations and it is only relatively recently that a few strong credit card brands have come to the forefront and offer real-time payment approval information. Second, some of the stores have been around for decades – or even hundreds of years! – and have survived this long on a cash-only policy. Third, European ideas of credit are different from North American ideas of credit (although Europeans are slowly adopting a North American attitude toward credit).

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Hitting Our Heads On the Debt Ceiling: What It is and Why It Matters

Recent news articles have highlighted a situation the United States Government is dealing with right now called "the debt ceiling" and many journalists are linking it to the debt crisis. But what is the debt ceiling and what how does it relate to the debt crisis?
Here's how:
Many consumers know all too well the problems associated with acquiring too much debt, reaching credit limits, and spending without discretion. When these things happen, consumers find themselves in debt, owing a lot of interesting, in collections, and even potentially facing bankruptcy. This isn't a surprise to anyone.
While this is the reality among individuals, the US government has discovered that it too is facing the same situation. The government borrows money, too, in the form of bonds and T-Bills. The government sells these, collects money, and spends that money on military and roads and pensions. When it collects taxes, it uses some of that tax money to pay back its "debt" on T-Bills and bonds.

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