No, Seriously, Don’t Buy Me Anything for Christmas

If you haven’t finished your holiday shopping…don’t?

Well, at least think long and hard about how much you’re spending and why. Our own Dave Newville has a nice piece up on CNN.com about the importance of saving–even during the holiday season.

Dave says:

 

Americans, however, should not go into debt to buy presents. Just as important, they need to start saving before they spend. It may sound like Scrooge to argue for saving during the holidays, but saving is essential if American families and the economy ever are to recover from the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.

 

Returning to business as usual without fundamentally recalibrating our household finances will just lead to the inflation of the next bubble. Easy credit helped get us into this mess, and credit cards and mortgages will be harder to come by from here on out.