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Like a 4-year-old child at the checkout counter in a supermarket, American consumers want just one more impulse buy to make their buying day complete, and apparently the more expensive it is, the better.

Here is an example: A 68-year-old, semi-retired businessman shells out $600,000 for a recreational vehicle which costs about $550 to top off at the pump. He and his wife are tooling around the country in an effort to have fun while they can.

His comment on the decision is that "This isn't a dress rehearsal for lifethis is it. We're curtailing nothing." Those big tears you see following his comment might well come from any children who see their inheritance fading away into the sunset with dad and mom.

Like a dog in heat, if we have it we tend to spend it in America.

All of this impulse buying is detailed in a recent USA Today article with this headline: "Spending is hotter than the 4th of July". And indeed it apparently is.

Although the median amount of credit-card debt carried by the typical American is about $6,600 (this is not a typo), 13% of respondents in a recent online poll reported balances higher than $25,000, according to CardTrack.com.

"Never have Americans, who have always liked their toys, been faced with a situation where their impulses are so hard to control," says Stuart Vyse, a professor of psychology and author of the upcoming book Going Broke: Why Americans Can't Hold on to Their Money.

The fact is that we as consumers can buy almost anything we want anytime we want on the easiest terms we want. Sellers and lenders have no compunctions about selling us what we do not need at a price we cannot afford and at a rate of payment that can eventually drive us into bankruptcy.

Sellers and lenders, especially credit card lenders, have raised this willingness to line their pockets at our expense to an art form. And yes, I understand and agree with the observation that we all need to be responsible for our actions.

What I do disagree with is this: How can doing the right thing with right thinking and right motives justify lending consumers money and credit when they do not deserve it, and then leaving them no smarter but broker and deeper in debt in the process?

All of this unmerited lending is creating and concentrating wealth among America's very rich, and the rich club in America is growing faster and farther away from America's poor and middle classes.

"For the first time in history, more than half of all earned income, specifically 50.4%, is going to 20% of the U. S. population, which amounts to $3.5 trillion in the hands of 23 million households," says Peter Francese, a demographic trends analyst for ad and marketing giant Ogilvy & Mather.

So more than half of the earned income in America is going to 20% of the population, leaving the other half to 80% of the working stiffs that are left to continue buying things they do not need at prices they cannot afford on credit.

A key component of this impulse spending happens because too many Americans think they can afford it when they cannot.

Families are less frugal today, in part because only 25% of households have married couples with children, a significant drop from 50% in 1960 and the lowest percentage in census history. We have a census procedure in this country to learn these kinds of sociological shifts.

There are more working couples without children who have more disposable income and keep spending rather than realizing their good fortune and saving. Leading the spending spree are the seniors mentioned at the beginning of this article.

Seniors have so much spendable income that a Luxury Marketing Council has been created to advise top brands on consumer trends for a growing group of seniors that have at least $1 million in liquid assets. They do not need to sell their home to buy a $125,000 Maserati, they simply write a check out of one of their accounts.

I personally would not encourage this kind of spending among any consumers, and especially on an automobile which is a decreasing asset. If you cannot control your impulse to buy, at least buy land or developed properties that might well appreciate over time.

The USA Today article carried information by Pitney Bowes MapInfo which identified the Top 20 Counties nationwide with the highest average expenditures annually per household. Here are the Top 7:

1) Marin, CA - $68,782

2) Fairfield, CT - $65,263

3) Fairfax, VA - $63,569

4) San Mateo, CA - $63,229

5) Morris, NJ - $62,995

6) Somerset, NJ - $62,345

7) Westchester, NY - $61,425

I identify these counties as "high rent districts" which are too expensive for most people to buy a home. One thing is for sure, if you do not make some major money, you are not going to be able to keep up with those earners who can.

Not all of us suffer from this apparent impulse to buy.

The answer to impulse control just might be in yoga. Yoga taught me "impulse control", the ability to feel an urge and delay acting on it. Yoga also taught me that when stability becomes a habit, maturity and clarity follow.

While earning money has a way of increasing financial intelligence quickly, I learned a long time ago that a fool and his money are some parted.

I will keep the $125,000 and you can have the Maserati. I will keep the $600,000 and you can have the recreational vehicle. Eventually, cash is king; the car and the recreational vehicle will eventually end up in the junkyard with a lot of other impulse purchases.

Copyright 2007 Ed Bagley

Ed Bagley is the Author of Ed Bagley's Blog which he Publishes with Original Articles on Current and Past Events, including Analysis and Commentary on Lessons in Life, Movies, Sports, Internet Marketing, Jobs and Careers that are intended to Delight, Inform, Educate and Motivate Readers. Visit Ed at . . .
http://www.edbagleyblog.com/MovieReviewArticles.html
http://www.edbagleyblog.com/LessonsinLifeArticles.html

This article is the fourth installment of a series on Natural Health Therapies and Cancer. The material presented is meant to inform you of complementary cancer therapies that are available in the medical community. These therapies are to be used in cooperation with other cancer treatment methods. They are not meant to be done in place of your physicians care. In the previous articles, we have discussed the fundamentals of cancer, reviewed a list of causes, explored the various types and stages of cancer, examined the role that nutrition can play in cancer growth, and looked at the use of herbal supplements as a form of cancer therapy. This segment will discuss various Physical Support Therapies and their benefits for individuals with cancer. The specific physical therapies will include Detoxification, Biological Dentistry, Water Therapy, Heat Therapy, Bodywork (which covers such areas as Therapeutic Massage and Exercise) and the ancient Chinese practice of Qi Gong.

Detoxification

I know that I have talked about the practice of detoxification in articles on diet, fasting, and cleansing your digestive system. In the society we live in, we are constantly bombarded by pollutants that directly affect our body. Right now, most drinking water contains over 700 chemicals; over 10,000 chemicals are used in food processing and storage; and over 3000 chemicals are added to the food supply. We directly ingest all of these toxins and they can remain in our body for years. The only way to cleanse the system is through a detoxification process.

There are several different systems to detoxify the body; the length of time for the various systems lasts from one week to several months. A thorough detoxification will address clearing all areas through which the body releases toxins -- the intestines, the bladder, the lungs, and the skin. In addition, each system will have a special program of nutrition to help rebuild the body's healing system.

In order to do a proper detoxification, you should consult with your physician regarding dietary changes, reduction of stress load, massage and skin brushing (stimulates nervous system and lymphatic system), herbal supplements, and nutrients such as antioxidants and probiotics to boost your immune system function.

Biological Dentistry

The practice of Biological Dentistry involves removing dental toxins such as mercury-based dental fillings and root canals that can harbor unidentified infections. This practice has been developing since the 1940s, and focuses on using nontoxic dental restoration material instead of mercury dental amalgams.

Practitioners believe that the mercury leeches out from dental fillings and travels into the body tissues. This process weakens the immune system, providing an opportunity for cancer growth. They also believe that root canals can contain hidden infections, which can directly contribute to the development of cancer.

The removal of amalgam fillings must be followed by any detoxification of the body in order to eliminate any residual mercury that may still be in the body tissues. This is a dietary process similar to the one described above and lasts roughly three months.

Water Therapy

The technique of Water Therapy or Hydrotherapy uses water, ice, steam, as well as water at hot and cold temperatures to assist the body in removing toxins. Techniques included steam baths, hot and cold compresses, sitz baths, colonic irrigations, and full-body immersions.

Water Therapy is used for detoxification as well as for the relief of stress and pain. This is achieved by increasing the blood circulation and heightening the immune response to the application of water techniques at various temperatures.

Heat Therapy

Hyperthermia or Heat Therapy is beneficial to individuals battling cancer because cancer cells are vulnerable to high temperatures. Methods of raising the temperatures include saunas, hot packs, steam baths, or wrapping oneself in hot blankets. Common medical approaches include ultrasound, shortwave or microwave diathermy, radiant heating, and extracorporeal heating.

Ultrasound increases the body temperature by the frictions of the sound waves as they pass through the various body tissues. Diathermy causes the body temperature to rise by electromagnetic energy delivered at certain radio frequencies. Radiant heat is the application of infrared heat to areas of the body. Extracorporeal heating is the practice of removing the blood, heating it outside of the body, and returning it to the body at a higher temperature.

Hyperthermia has been shown in studies to change the structure of cell membranes. It makes tumor cells, easier to attack with radiation or chemotherapy, while protecting the normal cells.

Bodywork

The term Bodywork refers to a wide range of practices such as Therapeutic Massage and Exercise. These techniques provide physical relaxation, stimulation of the circulatory system, reduction of pain, stimulation of the lymph system, and enhancement of the body's immune system.

Massage helps to relax muscle tension as well as speeding the removal of toxins from the system. Prolonged muscle contractions contribute to pain and interfere with the elimination of chemical wastes in the muscles.

Exercise helps with digestion, weight control, detoxification, and immune system function. Yoga, low-impact aerobics, calisthenics, stretching and flexing exercises are all good ways to strengthen the body's healing system. The benefits of exercise for people with cancer are as follows:

Increased blood supply to cells -- cancer cells cannot survive in an oxygen rich environment.

Lymph system stimulation -- muscular contractions help the lymph system remove toxins more rapidly.

Increased immune system function -- exercise increases the activity of the body's Natural Killer cells.

Increased body temperature -- exercise elevates the body temperature to a level that is destructive to cancer cells.

Qi Gong

Qi Gong (pronounce chee-GUNG) is a therapy of slow movements used to develop deep relaxation, enhanced oxygen supply, increased lymph circulation, and to reduce symptoms associated with cancer. This system has been used in China for centuries as a preventive measure. Qi Gong directs the production and flow of qi or vital life force throughout the body. This life force is considered an essential component of Traditional Chinese Medicine and determining the flow of qi is an important part of the analysis of any disease.

The main ways that Qi Gong aids in resisting cancer are by:

Supplying additional oxygen to the body cells this is helpful because cancer cells cannot survive in an oxygen-rich environment and unlike vigorous exercise the oxygen is distributed throughout the body instead of being concentrated in the muscles.

Improving the balance in the autonomic nervous system this is beneficial because the autonomic nervous system controls our fight-or-flight response and dumps stress-related hormones into our system that suppress our immune system. Balancing this system decreases blood pressure by dilating the blood vessels, which helps the oxygen supply and boosts the immune function.

Increasing the function of the lymph system - this is advantageous because the lymph system acts as the bodys sewage system, taking toxins from all the bodys cells. Improving the circulation of the lymph system rids the body of toxins more rapidly and transporting immune system cells to areas of need.

In the next article, we will complete our five part series on cancer as we explore the use of Energy Support Therapies for cancer therapy. These methods include Electrodermal Screening, Magnetic Therapy, and Light Therapy. If you would like more information on any topic discussed in this article, you can contact me through my website. As always, I hope that you have found this information helpful and educational. Remember that you are the one in charge of your health.

Jerry Ryan, Ph.D. is a Natural Health Coach who teaches individuals and group classes on the scientifically documented benefits of natural health techniques. He is also an internationally published author and has been a guest speaker at such places as NIKE World Headquarters. For more information, his website is http://www.JerryRyanPhD.com