What Is the Point?: Discover Card: Friend or Foe?

by Heather Myer

College students are often lured into filing credit card applications in exchange for freebees. At SMSU, I readily traded my information with Discover Card for a 2-XL t-shirt that hung on my size medium frame, Master Card for a cd-holder, Visa for a lunch box, and American Express for a poster. Commerce Bank offered a free gym bag for opening a spare line of credit. Express, Fashion Bug, Old Navy, Best Buy, Gap, Target, and the Limited received my patronage in exchange for 10% off at the time of purchase. By the end of my Freshman year, over 10 credit cards were tossed in a drawer, unused and inactivated. They were the souvenirs of free prizes, slightly discounted items, and very large t-shirts. These cards were eventually cut up and discarded. Only Discover outlasted the attack. The card’s survival was ensured by a tempting cash back bonus deal and a clever Union Jack logo. A Britophile at heart, it was unthinkable for me to cut up the emblem of the United Kingdom. It was as close to London as I’d ever managed to get. Perhaps using it would allow me to take a trip abroad one day.

After graduating college, I could no longer depend on student loans, grants, and scholarships for financial support. It didn’t take long to learn that despite my education, I had little business sense. Rather than learn to manage and juggle my budget, I began to use my Discover Card to cushion times of need, irresponsibility, and impulsive buys. Vacations to CA, CO, TX, and FL, unnecessary clothing, extravagant dinner parties, and an addiction to Barnes and Noble caused my debt to swell. Discover became an unruly monster that often reared its ugly head. As the balance grew, my credit limit rose from $1,000 to over $10,000. Soon, the burden was daunting, with no end in sight. Desperate for freedom, I trapped the vile temptress in a block of ice. In a matter of weeks, the card was easily thawed and back to its wicked ways. Though unpredictable and untamable, I could not bear to destroy the instrument of my financial despair. What if I might need it? It looked so lonesome and frightened next to the scissors. Giving it a second chance, I foolishly placed it back into my wallet.

Using my Discover Card has became a viscous cycle. I pay it off, only to incur more debt. This year alone, I’ve paid my debt three times, and once again have a triple digit balance. I long to be cut loose from the ties that bind me. My heart has become burdened for freedom from the shackles of slavery. America won the Revolutionary War in 1783, an infant land breaking forth from its tyrannical heritage. It is high time I follow in the footsteps of my forefathers. So long Discover, my adversary since 1997. Farewell Union Jack, for I am an American and you are not my flag. Auf Wiedershen cash back bonus, you never profited much. Good-bye my size 2-XL tee that never fit. Yielding the scissors and with a triumphant cry of victory, I bid my credit card a fond adieu. It now lies in shards. I am free!