Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

Conclusion

Newly formed tradition in American society suggests that each person should obtain a debit card, credit card, ATM card, discount shopping card, etc. Yet, predatory and targeted marketing, like that revealed in Maxed Out, does a great job of everything but explain the fine print. Most people aren’t aware that the first time they’re late on a credit card payment, their contract gives the card company the right to raise their default interest rate to, in most cases, at least 28.99%. At that rate, a laptop computer bought on credit today, and paid in monthly installments on a minimum-wage income might never be paid off. People take care of themselves first, with food, shelter, and gas; debt payments are often the last obligation to be fit into a household’s already stretched budget.

There seems to be an overwhelming level of inequality and unfairness in the empire that is money lending. Consumer ignorance is taken advantage of regularly because there is nobody to step in and ask the hard questions. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Once people find themselves in a hole they realize they can’t dig out of, they resort to filing for bankruptcy and occasionally killing themselves. Marx suggested a violent uprising to deal with problems of this nature. Perhaps an uprising of some kind, perhaps of a more figurative kind, is what is necessary for the principal of justice at stake here to be addressed: Should lenders be allowed to take advantage of financially uneducated persons without ensuring they fully understand what it is they’re committing to? I would recommend that a commission or law-making body of some kind be tasked with addressing this issue, however this has already been done and it yielded no finite results. The reason it was unsuccessful, as Maxed Out illustrates, is because of bureaucracy. To address the issue of inequality and the absence of equilibrium with regard to the American political arena, would require an entirely separate paper.

Other posts on sociology and Maxed Out:
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Introduction
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Jane Addams Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Karl Marx Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Africana Theorists Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

Works Cited
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes The Africana Theorists, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Karl Marx, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_ 2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
Maxed Out. Dir. James Scurlock. Perf. Mark Mumma, Ronald Reagan. DVD. Magnolia, 2005.