I think a lot of folks are missing a big point: The author understands that he spent more than his income: > In retrospect, of course, my problem was simple:

I think a lot of folks are missing a big point: The author understands that he spent more than his income: > In retrospect, of course, my problem was simple: too little income, too many expenses. Credit enabled me to forestall this problem for a time—and also to make it progressively worse—but the root of the problem was deeper. I never figured that I wouldn’t earn enough. Few of us do. I thought I’d done most of the right things. The article is really about grappling with having "done most of the right things", yet not being able to afford "the right things", as well as the ensuing penalty. I think the real point the article is missing: The standard-of-living in the US relies on unsustainable spending, compared to the 1990s-2000s. A deeper article might explore why the standard-of-living was being artificially inflated (a credit bubble, with its roots in the 80s). As a bonus article, consider if society turns against debt-as-a-way-of-life (like the generation that lived through the depression) or if the securitization-of-debt market begins to falter. That would be a true horror story. PS. I think this is one of the meatiest articles to come out on personal finances in a long time, and it's far too meaty for the full discussion it should have (it'll be gone in a day on HCN, way past the 10 minutes or so any of us will spend on it.) EDIT: Changed the bit about standard-of-living, which distracts the point. Yes real earnings are down, yes the employment ratio is down, yes college is unaffordable. But Total sq ft per house is way up, cell phones are a tech advance, so how you measure standard-of-living turns into another big topic.