There is also a popular notion that it is your economic duty to yourself to invest in a house, rather than rent. The other side of the "only a fool borrows more than he will be able to pay back" coin is "only a fool doesn't borrow a hundred thousand so he can invest in a house and thus get himself ahead financially."

I had always understood that willingness to incur debt - that is to say, take financial risk - in order to get ahead was a great American virtue. Certainly it seems to be part and parcel of many of the great American success stories. And in many of those stories, you find a bankruptcy or two along the way, before the ambitious entrepreneur hits the jackpot. I'm a little surprised at the kind of scorn expressed in some these posts for those who sink over their heads in debt.

There seem to be some "mixed messages" out there.