Comment on Anon calls in for financial advice

• spicytuna62@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago

  Hi. I’m an person in finance. Fuck Dave Ramsey. He gives decent financial advice, but the way he shoehorns God into financial matters so frequently was off-putting to me, even when I was a Christian. That, and he’s a racist, bigoted POS.

  If you’re in the middle class, his baby steps are somewhat solid stuff, though.

  • Learn how to write a budget. There are sites out there to help you with that. Personally, I’ve found I like a spreadsheet best.
  • Reconcile your accounts daily. Know where your money has been and where it’s going.
  • Squirrel away some cash. A grand ain’t much to have, but it’s a fuckton to owe.
  • Don’t drive glitzy cars. A '99 Corolla gets you there just as effectively as a new Tahoe.
  • Get out of credit card debt ASAP. If you can’t pay cash for it and you don’t need it, you can’t buy it.
  • If debt is crushing you, use what windfalls you can get to pay them down.
  • Eat out less. Cook at home more. Not only is it less expensive, it’s generally healthier.

  But saving six months’ expenses and paying off your house early…yeah, that’s not feasible for at least 70% people. Especially renters.

  The truth is Dave’s screeners do not let anyone through if his program can’t help them. I mean, a single parent in a rural town whose boss won’t pay them enough to survive and whose economic prospects are so limited that “just get a better job” will never work because there aren’t any. People who must rely on the generosity of others to get by and will be completely fucked if they lose their government assistance. Or worse - their job. There’s no financial advice that can help them. Because we live under an economic system that can’t operate if those at the bottom aren’t going through untold suffering and can be helped by “drive an old car, eat beans and rice, and just get a better job.”

  At that point, it’s not the fault of the person. It’s the fault of the system. Dave isn’t the problem, but he’s certainly a complication.

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