-- 30 May 2007 --

THE US IS # 1:

First in External Debt:. The United States owes $10.040 trillion, nearly a quarter of the global debt total of $44 trillion.

WHO'S HURTING MOST?

Douglas Craver: “Nearly all additional wealth created in the USA since 1989 has gone to people 55 and older, according to Federal Reserve data. Wealth has doubled since 1989 in households headed by older Americans.

Not so for younger Americans. Households headed by people in their 20s, 30s and 40s have barely kept up with inflation or have fallen behind since 1989. People 35 to 50 actually have lost wealth since 1989 after adjusting for inflation, Fed data show.”

"In Debt We Trust is an educational expose' which ought to be watched by anyone thinking about signing up for their first piece of plastic because, today, the average college student owes $50,000 by the time they graduate. While $30,000 of that figure is in tuition loans, the balance is accounted for by an accumulation of consumer spending inflated by interested and fees."

PASATIEMPO (Santa Fe):

“There’s only one movie in Santa Fe scarier than 28 Weeks Later—this expose of the credit card industry by documentarian Danny Schechter.”

The Santa Fe Reporter:

"SFR Pick: With investigative journalism and first-person reporting, director Danny Schechter digs into where many of us are buried—consumer debt. It’s a credit to Schechter that he is able to reap profitable insights, as well as entertainment, from a story of economic interest."

The Salt Lake City Weekly Compares In Debt We Trust to Maxed Out:

Real journalism in the visual medium has all-but-disappeared from television in recent years. Outrage at authority and at the status quo are, however, showing up in movies—in theaters sometimes, but more frequently as direct-to-DVD films sold directly to … well, the angry, the informed, and those who want to be informed.

Flying lower under the radar is In Debt We Trust: America Before the Bubble Bursts. Far more rebellious than Scurlock, Danny Schechter here casts an even wider net across the sea of instability just barely breaching the surface of the American economy—Foreclosures up! Bankruptcy “reform” hurts everyone except big business!—to show how deeply the American middle- and lower-class is at the mercy of major banking corporations, and how the bottom must inevitably fall out.

IN DEBT WE TRUST INVITED TO SOUTH AFRICAN FESTIVAL
From ScreenAfrica.Com

The 28th Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), taking place from 20 June to 1 July, will, together with SANPAD (South Africa-Netherlands Research Programme on Alternatives in Development), present a special series of films around the issues of poverty and inequality.

SOME MAJOR RECENT STORIES ON THE THEMES THE FILM RAISES

THE WASHINGTON POST ON NEW CREDIT CARD DISCLOSURES - “Regulators are listening to the complaints and preparing to issue stronger consumer protection rules. The Federal Reserve proposed new, long-awaited regulations on Wednesday that would require credit card companies to make disclosures clearer and easier to understand. But some lawmakers say they think that the Fed rules, which could become final by year's end, may not be enough and that new law might be needed.

A bill introduced two weeks ago by Sens. Carl M. Levin (D-Mich.) and Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) would ban interest charges on debt paid by the due date, cap penalty interest-rate increases and prohibit interest from being charged on late fees or over-the-limit fees. The measure would also ban late fees if a card issuer delays crediting a payment, require firms to offer the option of a fixed limit a customer would not be allowed to exceed and require companies to apply payments first to charges carrying the most expensive interest rate." Full article...

HOME PRICES PLUNGE; SALES SOAR - Talk about committing economic suicide! Buying a new home in this economy is nothing less than that. As we all know, while the sale price may be low, trying to maintain a home under a mountain of debt in an economy headed for a brick wall is well, to say the least, a bit self-destructive. Full article...

STRUGGLING TO KEEP A HOME IN MICHIGAN - Dawn and Scott Hentschel came within a sliver of losing their home after Scott, a construction worker, was laid off two months earlier than usual last fall.
Full article...

* * *

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If you have comments or suggestions, share them with me at dissector@mediachannel.org.

Danny Schechter
Editor Mediachannel.org
Director IN DEBT WE TRUST
InDebtWeTrust.com
212 246-0202x3006

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LETTTER FROM JOE BUSS, HUMANA CALIFORNIA

"I'd like to thank you for making a film about something most people don't want to talk about these days. You did a wonderful job in documenting the major forces that are responsible for exploding levels of personal debt
load.

I've often compared credit to fire. If used properly, it can be very useful. If mismanaged, you'll get burned. I can also make a convincing metaphor
between those that push credit; banks, and those that push hard illegal drugs; drug dealers. Both banks and drug dealers offer an addictive product. Both groups know that their product is addictive and they will go to great lengths to initiate the addiction.

I do have one bit of criticism for your excellent film. I don't think you did as good a job as you could have in presenting a balanced view about personal debt. Yes the banks/credit card companies are evil, BUT consumers who get way over their head in debt are equally as responsible for getting themselves in trouble. Your film should have exposed the consumer's relentless pursuit of living beyond their means. I think the theme of "living beyond one's means" and its connection to loose lending practices and credit should have been more central in your documentary."

Danny Schecter's response:

"Thanks Joe. The film couldn’t be about everything. In Debt We Trust does feature Steve Barnett’s concerns about our “shop until you drop” society, and Attorney Lou Cherico’s advice to ignore the hype and not borrow money you know you cannot afford to repay. We live in a marketing culture where the buy, buy, buy message is everywhere and is reinforced by TV commercials which are very seductive and designed to sell.

Yes, some of us can and do hold back—but many of us want what they think others have. It leads to the disease called “Affluenza.”