Word: credit-card
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...stimulate the domestic economy by getting thrifty citizens to borrow and spend has been too successful. Today, every working South Korean has on average four credit cards?and some 2.2 million people are behind on their payments, having rung up a staggering total of about $100 billion in credit-card debt. That's $2,000 in debt for every Korean, an amount equal to roughly a quarter of the country's annual economic output...
...personal bankruptcy. Newspapers have reported a rash of suicides, violent crime, kidnappings and prostitution attributed to overborrowing. In September, a deep-in-hock housewife leaped to her death from a ninth-floor apartment, taking her 13-year-old daughter with her. In August, two young women with heavy credit-card bills killed themselves by drinking a cocktail of alcohol and poison. "I often speak to debtors [who are] on the verge of suicide," says Seok Seung Oak, who runs an online counseling service for credit abusers. "The disgrace they feel is enormous...
...less than 10% last year while household debt, which includes personal loans and credit cards, soared by 30% last year to $365 billion. South Korea lapsed into recession in the first half of 2003, which made it harder for consumers to pay their bills on time. Unlike most credit-card markets, Korean lenders do not offer revolving credit, which allows borrowers to pay off their debt over months or even years. Instead, balances must usually be paid in full after just 30 days, making it easy for consumers, who pay 25%-plus annual interest rates, to fall behind...
...computer world but promptly gobbled up a million tracks in the first week of business. By October he was ready to set the Music Store aloft in the 97% of the world that uses Windows PCs, and the prospect of converting millions of music pirates into credit-card wielding music buyers was enough to make even the most jaded rock stars take notice. How did Jobs do this trick? In a word: simplicity--the transparent ease of use that is the hallmark of Apple's entire product line, including the Music Store. "I'm a complete computer dummy," McLachlan told...
...course, Bezos is not running the archive as some kind of nonprofit virtual library. He's improving our access to books because he wants to sell us more of them. Only registered Amazon customers may use the service (registration is free but a credit-card number is required). Even the most determined searchers will not be allowed to see more than 20% of any single book. The idea is to turn us all into bibliophiles by showing just how many authors have written about whatever topic we desperately need to know more about. The first few pages are free. Once...