Clark read a story in the Washington Post about how debt problems are spreading rapidly into high school. High school students are using credit cards at triple the rate they were two years ago. And college students are running up balances at tremendous increases of 24 percent in just two years. Almost all college students now carry credit cards, and there is nothing wrong with having a credit card. But these students use credit cards as a way to buy things with “flash and no cash.” Very early on they establish a pattern of buying what they can’t pay for. Students are graduating from college with nearly double the student loan debt they had just a few years ago. The average is about $20,000. So, let’s assume you just finished your undergraduate degree and you have thousands of dollars in student loan debt and a pattern of using plastic as a way out. If they go on to graduate school or law school, the debt grows even higher. Then if you get into a relationship with someone else who has debt, you’re starting out at a huge disadvantage. Parents need to teach the concept early on that you only buy what you can pay for.