Answer the following questions.
- How effective is Carlos’s argument that the predatory practices of banks and credit card companies are the primary cause of credit card debt among college students? (See our introduction to Carlos’s paper, which was written in 2008 before the signing of the federal Credit Card Act.)
- The problems illustrated in Carlos’s paper had received national attention for many years, but no legislation was passed until the 2009 Credit Card Act. This act has apparently been successful. According to ConsolidatedCredit.org, 46 percent of college students had a credit card in their name in 2005. By 2015, only 23 percent had credit cards. By 2015, only one in ten purchases by college students used credit cards. Instead, 42 percent of purchases used debit cards while 40 percent used cash. From the perspective of a college student, what are the advantages and disadvantages of a credit card versus a debit card?
- Given the problems with credit card debt highlighted by Carlos, do you think federal regulations were necessary to protect college students? Or should the government stay out of the regulatory business and let individuals look out for themselves?
