The terms were pretty straight forward

As of press time, the national debt stands at $6,144,393,982,061.52. Under the terms of the consolidation, E-Z Debt Services will repay the nation’s estimated 45,000 creditors, a majority of whom are foreign investors, insurance companies, banks, and other privately held entities. In return, the U.S will make a single monthly payment of $9.26 billion, adjusted for inflation, to E-Z Debt every month for the next 70 years.

Before I go any further, this article is, of course, a spoof. For that matter, it was written in 2002 and even then, it painted a frighteningly funny picture of what our befuddled government was doing with the national purse.

Just to be current, the outstanding public debt at the writing of this article is $9,244,111,233,460.80 according to the U.S. National Debt Clock. If that figure is too unwieldy to wrap your mind around, it breaks down a little something like this

The estimated population of the United States is 304,309,084 so each citizen’s share of this debt is $30,377.38. The National Debt has continued to increase an average of $1.48 billion per day since September 29, 2006!

It is sad that a mock article written in 2002 not only remains true but has gotten WORSE! If nothing more, may this serve as a cautionary tale for us Debt Hackers to be vigilant in neither underestimating nor irresponsibly handling our personal debt lest it careen out of control like that of the good old U.S.A.

Read the full article at TheOnion.com.

Ways To Save Money?

• Unplug your clocks at night to save on electricity.
• Carry powdered drink mix and add it to water when eating out, to save on buying drinks.
• Install a cat door and train your cat to go outside and to the neighbors yard to go to the bathroom. This saves you on cat litter and time cleaning the yard.
• Eat dog food. (According to this contributor, the dry dog food is better than the canned.)
• Tell everyone you’ll be out of town for Christmas, so you can shop the after-Christmas sales for presents.
• Ask your friends to save the labels for you off any new products they buy, so you can put them on your thrift-store purchases when you are buying gifts.
• Run around the house and close the heater vents in all the rooms except your bedroom before going to sleep.
• Encourage mice in the house by leaving crumbs around - so your cat will have a free food supply.
• Learn speed-reading and read books for free while in the aisle at the book store.
• Leave everything in the same place in your house, so you can easily get around at night without turning the lights on.
• Bring back rolls of coins from Canada, to use at the laundromat and in pop machines, saving you 20% or more, depending on the exchange rate.

Okay, these may be funny ways to save money, but did any of them tempt you? Do you pick up pennies on the street? Wouldn’t it be more efficient to just stay on the clock at work for an extra minute? Hey, and while you are there, take a big drink of water - to save on your home water bill.

Steve Gillman studies money. To get free e-courses and e-books on money topics, and for more Funny Ways To Save Money, visit: http://www.UnusualWaysToMakeMoney.com

• Reviewing the strategy that failed
• Setting reasonable goals
• Re-evaluating your definition of reasonable

The post is actually a reflection on author MP Dunleavey’s own journey to being free of debt. Through her humorous candor, she reveals concrete ways to approach the task while encouraging us to reflect on the times we have made this goal in the past and what happened as a result.

It all calls to mind the journey of someone trying to quit smoking. The experts say that the average smoker usually ‘quits’ five or six times before it finally sticks. Well, the same can be said of people who affirm and re-affirm to be debt free year after year. It is okay to not succeed the first few times, but it makes the final time a lot easier if you go into it with the wisdom of your past experiences.

Dunleavy says it best when she states

It pays to know your financial demons when you’re aiming for long-term progress. Rein in those little devils, and nothing will get in the way of you getting where you want to go.

It’s good advice that I, personally, intend to take to heart by following her prescription for becoming debt free by 2009. I will keep you posted on my progress!

Check out the full article at MSN Money.

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot afford and not try to buy them anyway; [the] courage to change my mind about something I don’t really like and just take it back or leave it in the store to begin with; and [the] wisdom to know the difference between items that are worth the expense and items that should only ever be bought out of season, on super sale or at Target.

I’ll say amen to that!