I have cool friends.



Margaret was given this old-school piggy bank by mjperson. By old-school I mean it's the type where you have to break it in order to get the money out. He apparently went through a fair amount of trouble to get this type of piggy bank, and I think that says a lot about the current economic mess and how we got here.

People don't save anymore. In fact, people had been carrying more and more debt, and it got just plain crazy. People began using equity from their homes to fund credit card purchases, which is madness to my way of thinking. Home equity loans can be a good thing when used properly; my parents took out a home equity loan to send me to MIT. On the other hand, there is a huge difference between using equity to send a kid to college and using equity to purchase goods and services. Lack of saving isn't the only thing that led to the current economic woes, but the irresponsible attitude toward money was certainly a huge factor. Breaking into your savings should be a big deal, not something you do lightly.

I'm wishing this little piggy a long and prosperous life.