The Fourth of July, a Day to Make a Stand

The Fourth of July, Independence Day in the United States. This is a day that we celebrate the birth of our nation and a when we remember the sacrifices made by men and women through our history. We honor those who gave of themselves and suffered the hard times to make our country strong.

This Fourth of July we should do more. This Fourth of July all Americans need to make a stand. We live in a complicated world and it is not easy to make goals and to stick to them but I'm sure it is a lot easier than signing your name on a document declaring yourself at odds against one of the most powerful nations in the world. Think about it, on July 4, 1776 these people stood in defiance of the gallows to declare the colonies independent from England. Their names would be known to every British soldier right up to General Cornwallis.

What we need to do is not nearly that risky. In fact it will do us good. First we must make a vow to live within our means. This means using the credit cards only for emergencies and as a planned convenience. A planned convenience is to use a credit card for a purchase knowing that you can pay for the purchase in the same month. Avoid monthly finance charges like the plague. If you can't buy the latest thing this month, save up for it. More people are learning how to do this again.

We have allowed ourselves to create a credit driven society. This makes a lot of smart people a lot of money but it is not healthy for us or our nation. So many of us don't realize who our creditors are, or if our payments will stay the same. From variable mortgages to credit cards, we are constantly at the mercy of other people for our financial lives. We must minimize this. We can't stop it; very few of us can afford to go out and pay cash for a house or immediately pay off the mortgages that we have, but we can minimize the financial tyranny.

Declare your independence from the clever advertising schemes that tell you to buy the newest thing. Most things work just fine for many years. Computers and cars are upgradable; they do not have to be replaced every two years. Relearn the meaning of the word fund. Start a car fund a few years before you need a new car. Start a computer fund if you really think you need a new computer.

I am a computer gamer and I did a foolish thing. I bought a computer game without paying attention to the requirements needed to run the game. My computer would not run the game because the video card in my computer did not have enough memory. This is an upgradable piece. I had the game for several months before I was prepared to spend any more money. Finally I went to the store and bought a video card for seventy bucks and now my computer runs the game just fine. Ask yourself why you think you need a new computer. More often than not the problem with your old computer is fixable; for some problems it may just be a matter of optimizing your system.

I realize that the economy will not recover until people spend more, but people need to spend smarter. If that means the economy does not come back to the old credit crazy levels then that, in my opinion, is a good thing. We must rebuild our economy on a stronger base.

Think before you buy. Save for things that you want. Upgrade and/or fix the things you have. Consider it a patriotic duty for Independence Day.