Those of you who follow my blog know that I’m a pragmatic realist who believes in romance only in appropriate situations.

Money is not one of those situations. Repeat – there is nothing romantic about money. Romance is make- believe and wishful thinking ; fairy tales filled with longings to be satisfied and endings that are happy.

Money operates in the real world . Anyone who doesn’t understand that isn’t ready to call himself or herself an adult. Not understanding money, how it works and the obligations it creates, causes marriages to fail, companies to declare bankruptcy and countries to become indebted to their neighbors.

If I were appointed the Secretary of Education in President Obama’s cabinet, one of the first things I would do is allocate funds for financial education programs to be taught in middle and high schools across the country. If financial education programs were mandatory for all high school graduates, young people would better understand how their behavior with money affects them in the real world.

They would learn the pitfalls of credit cards as contractual obligations that will haunt them financially until they are repaid.

They would make better marriage partners because they would understand the seductive nature of spending more than they have.

They would understand how they are manipulated by advertising, peer pressure and incessant attempts to make them feel inadequate without the newest or coolest.

There will be casualties. The bridal industry would take a direct hit as prospective couples ran the numbers to see if they really can afford a $28,000 wedding. (That’s the national average every year.) The credit card industry’s profits would nosedive as informed users realize that the interest they pay often runs more than the price of what they purchased.

But wait, this is romantic thinking. Ain’t gonna happen in my lifetime.

This entry was posted on Saturday, November 8th, 2008 at 8:17 am. Visit the archives for all blog posts.