People end up in debt because of many reasons. There are those who encounter disasters and accidents, suddenly become unemployed, run out of savings, need to service legal expenses for divorce and child custody, attend to medical bills, and then there are those who just have spending impulses.

Credit Card Debt Relief

But however debt is incurred, the truth remains that a debtor must pay back whatever he or she owes to the creditor. Some can do it on their own, but others just need to acquire professional help and enroll in debt relief programs to resolve their debt problems. After some years, their debts get paid and everyone is happy. But not for long. Because debt can come back crawling in if you do not adjust and prepare yourself.

The best solution to avoid debt is to change one’s way of living. For people who overspend, this solution should be self-explanatory. For those who encounter unexpected events that cause them to make loans and rely on credit, this solution allows you to prepare for the worst. Limiting one’s spending and saving money for future use is the ultimate answer to keeping yourself financially stable. Whether you are currently experiencing financial crisis or not, saving and living within your means will help you keep good financial standing.

The basic and central rule that everyone should adopt is to live within one’s means. Simplicity is key. Know how much you make. Then know how much would be enough to provide for what you need. The rest becomes your savings. In the long run, you will realize that you have amassed a fortune with this practical rule. Putting a financial restraint also means you should keep credit cards out of the equation. The credit card is the direct opposite of what you are trying to achieve. If you can live with cash alone, do so. You would thank yourself later on.

This may be easier said than done for most of us. Especially when you are used to the good life, it would be hard to cut back on your expenses because it would feel like depriving yourself. At first, this would seem to be the case. But once you have adjusted to the system and have acquired savings, it is only proper that you reward yourself from time to time. Eat out or buy yourself a new item. However, rewarding yourself does not mean that you indulge and use your entire savings. You should still incorporate discipline and control. If you guard yourself and live by these simple rules, you guarantee a debt-free life for yourself, not just for the present, but for the future.

Available debt relief solutions may help free you from debt but the only real solution lies on you. Lifestyle change and an overhaul of spending habits would prove to be more beneficial on a long-term basis.

I’m no expert but if I was a betting character, I would have to say ‘Yes’. I can’t see personal investors agreeing to such a write-off of their assets. Here is a very interesting link as to the percentages required from the people who have invested their own money:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-03-08/world-share-markets-close-higher/3876156

Credit debt consolidation in Greece is still a long way off. Personal investors tend to take much more interest in where their own money is placed. Big Financial companies are too big; they are dealing with big numbers to actually take too much care of the smaller ones.  They only see two things:

1.            What’s in it for them? And

2.            Who is their biggest client?

The financial Companies are driven by the needs of their shareholders and the fact that you are a small investor doesn’t really count in the big scheme of financial management.  Your smaller investment is lumped into a whole and then they have the big number to place your investment wherever they are most likely to get the biggest interest rate.

Once the Investment firms have got the biggest investment dollar for their Company shareholders, they will then disperse to you the crumbs.  This is why anyone who has money to invest in Greece today has some very hard decisions to make.

They have the choice of losing a large percentage of their investment money via the big investment firms when /if they agree to a ‘pay cut’ to keep the Country solvent or they can let Greece default on the sovereign debt and let the country of Greece go bankrupt.

If Greece Decides to Default on their credit debt and declares Bankruptcy 

Effectively Greece has already shown itself to be insolvent but the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are propping up the Greek economy to save their own economies.

Greek Credit Debt Legacy

As a small investor, you always need to look to see where the vested interests lie to be able to make a better decision. Any decision that is based on facts, will always give you a more accurate choice.  Any investment that is based on the shadow of a butterfly will fail.

If Greece is finally allowed to declare itself legally bankrupt, everyone living today is going to feel some pain one way or another. This is the price we pay for having a Global economy.

The product they sell is money and their supplier in Australia, is the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). Australian banks are among the most profitable banks in the world and that is a good thing for Australians and other money markets that invest in the Australian currency. But what is not a good thing is the banks have pulled away from their foundation which is depositors (clients) and are now serving shareholders as their clients.

Which Bank?

It is not only the Australian banks that have fallen into this financial industry trap; a prime example right now is Greece and other countries in the Eurozone.  They don’t have profitable banks to begin with, and they have depositors who aren’t making enough money to be able to save any in any bank. These unfortunate people have large personal credit debt consolidation problems because they have such a high unemployment rate which is about to get a lot worse.

If the people don’t have any money now, how are they expected to live under these proposed new austerity measures demanded by Germany, the IMF and the ECB?

What is making this sovereign debt worse is that those people in Greece who have money, are not investing in these unprofitable banks for fear of losing money.

Well, when investors consider their own country’s banking system a risk, why should anyone else in any country, anywhere in the world, be expected to bail them out? Aren’t these potential shareholders part of the problem and a part of the solution?

We won’t even get into the power struggles going on between the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Central Bank (ECB) and the ‘meat’ in the sandwich are those Eurozone Countries who use the Euro as their currencies.

The unfortunate likelihood for the rest of the world is that we are all going to be hit with the debris when the Euro fall happens. And happen it will; it’s just a matter of when.

When banks treat shareholders as their clients yet expect to be bailed out by the taxpayers who are both depositors and shareholders; it is a very unjust and unsustainable financial system long term.

The role of Government is to protect and govern the people of a Country

Democratic Governments around the western world have failed miserably in their responsibilities, obligations and purpose. They have been infiltrated and bought by moneyed vested interests at the expense of the people they have been elected to represent.

This is especially true of the Banking and Mining industries in Australia. When the reserve bank of Australia decides that there is no need to move on interest rates, either lowering or raising, and two of the big four banks of Australia immediately raises their interest rate claiming that the cost of borrowing off shore has increased due to the parlous financial state of the Euro, they are thumbing their noses at the Government and their depositor clients while pandering to their shareholders.

When shareholders have the “upper hand” deciding what is good or bad for a country, then what use are elections?

Banks need to stick to their core business which is selling money. If they had good sales then the profits follow the same as for every other business and shareholders being good business people too would want to invest and grab a portion of all that profit.

Australian banks regularly declare profits of the Billions of dollars every twelve-thirteen weeks (yes, that is 12-13 weeks!) how come more of that profit is not shared more equably out to their depositors and not just shared with shareholders?

There is a particularly good article here:   http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/3815636.html

New Laws should be made to remove Lobbyists from accessing Government Ministers  

A Government who really want to serve the people who elected them should enact a new law banning lobbyists of vested interest groups from being able to access serving Ministers.

Currently in Australia, there is a ridiculous prohibition of 6-12 months from a Government Minister from leaving office to when they can act as a Consultant on behalf of a vested interest group. I mean really, that is just a nice long holiday time for him to move back into their electorate and have a bit of a rest before going back to work, isn’t it?

The Achilles Heel of the Australian Prudential Banking Regulator (APRA)

The Achilles heel today with APRA, lies in their employment base. Financial understanding is gained from experience in the industry as well as from institutions of higher learning. Obviously, APRA looks for the best personnel for their staff and they look for experienced people. To get this experience, they employ from the banking industry.

So it is these people, who have now become the regulators of the banks that many of them have worked for!

“ As a result, banks have always risked insolvency if their funders rapidly withdraw their money. In the 1890s, before the RBA existed, most of Australia’s private banks failed. That’s why we now have a public “central bank” that lends directly to the private banks. And it’s the reason we have a banking regulator, APRA, to ensure that the banks hold enough “capital” to cover liquidity shocks.”

Read the full story here:  :   http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/3815636.html

If you believe that there doesn’t exist collusion and nepotism, can I please come live on your plant too?

Australian Banks …or banks anywhere in the world today…that pay more money and credence to their shareholders instead of their depositors are on a slippery-slope to bringing us all down to the next big depression.  Unless Governments are prepared to act on behalf of their people, I can’t see it ending any other way, can you?

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