People on that moral crusade never seem to take the time to actually think about what those words and numbers mean. If a friend let you borrow $100 for 2 weeks,

People on that moral crusade never seem to take the time to actually think about what those words and numbers mean. If a friend let you borrow $100 for 2 weeks, I don't think a 6 pack of beer ($8) would be an unreasonable "thank you"/interest payment when you pay them back. That would be a 192% APR. These are small, short term loans. Of course the rates become insane when you extrapolate to a year. The other side is a lot of people seem to assume they're compounding rates, I have never seen one with compounding interest. Sure, the fees keep accumulating but they are not compounding.