Suze Orman : Poor Economy Advice

Suze Orman appeared on the cover of this month's Ms. Many feel that she is selling common sense. But, I have to say that in this capitalistic culture, common sense is easy to forget. Hello.....world economy crashing because we are addicted to oil and commercialism. OK, that was really left of me:)

But anyway, I find her basic advice generally right on, but not in this article. In this month's Ms. she speaks about issues that affect us during this poor economy.

Suze says that credit card debt is evil. It will eventually bankrupt you. If you have money in savings, use it to pay off your credit cards. OK, I buy that.

She goes on to speak about 401Ks. Suze says to never, ever take money out. Even if you have to file for bankruptcy. She says, "That money is protected. It's going to be there for you no matter what happens to you in life." Well, OK Suze- wouldn't bankruptcy be one of those things? I mean..let's see. Take money out of 401K, and be able to keep my home and feed my child. Or, file for bankruptcy. Sorry, Suze but I disagree with you here. Especially, since, due to America's economic collapse, my 401k is now worthless!

Moving on, she is a proponent for couples keeping separate accounts. Personally, I think this is bum advice. My husband and I got married later in life. We kept our separate accounts for the first 5 years of the marriage. It was purely out of laziness that we kept it this way. But, we were constantly writing each other checks, needing to have balance the checkbook meetings, and doing the "which account to pay from" dance. It was really a pain. Yes, 50% of marriages do end in divorce. There is a security in having your own money. But guess what, it really isn't. Divorce law splits assets 50/50 no matter what account it is in. Basically, if you are afraid of the marriage ending, then separate checking accounts ain't gonna save ya!

So after writing about these issues, I am feeling sort of insecure. Our money in our 401Ks can vanish, relationships can vanish...so what is it all for.

I'll tell you. Your dog. Your dog will never leave or take you money. So, there it is folks. My cerebral summary to Suze Orman's advice.

Suze Orman, Financial Advice, Money