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Movie review: Idiocracy starring Luke Wilson, directed by Mike Judge Mike Adams, the Health Ranger See article keywords and concepts

People who refinance their homes to pay their credit card debt, and then rack up new credit card debt, thinking their home is some kind of limitless cash-dispensing ATM machine. The fact is, most people just don't have the IQ to handle living in modern society, at least not when there are financial decisions that need to be made. So thumbs up to Mike Judge for showing us the way our world really is by depicting a future world that might actually come to pass.

The Food-Mood Solution: All-Natural Ways to Banish Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Stress, Overeating, and Alcohol and Drug Problems--and Feel Good Again Jack Challem See book keywords and concepts

Instead, they succumb to buying the latest consumer products and often carry considerable high-interest credit card debt. Control your shopping. How can you change shopaholic behavior? According to Mike Millard, a friend and one of the simplicity gurus in Tucson, Arizona, it helps to follow five steps. • When you do have to go shopping, always use a shopping list. • If you're tempted to make an impulse purchase, ask yourself whether you can live without the product. • Resist the seduction of advertising.

You: Staying Young: The Owner's Manual for Extending Your Warranty Mehmet C. Oz., M.D. and Michael F. Roizen, M.D. See book keywords and concepts

And, of course, with credit card debt exceeding the national debt, having a good frame of mind about your plastic is important. Use your cards for the convenience of paying your bills, not to avoid paying them. YOU Tip: Make Additions. Two de-stressors to add to your home: pets and plants. Plants have been shown to decrease infection rates in nursing homes and lower blood pressure, while people who get a pet after having a heart attack are less likely to have another heart attack, especially if they walk that pet.

Financial Armageddon: Protecting Your Future from Four Impending Catastrophes Michael J. Panzner See book keywords and concepts

With an average of $3,800 in the bank, $2,200 in credit card debt, a $95,000 mortgage securing a $160,000 home (soon to be worth far less), and household earnings of approximately $43,000, the typical American family, as described in the Fed's 2004 consumer finance survey, won't have a lot of room to maneuver. For those in more difficult circumstances, like the 10 percent of owners with zero-to-negative equity in their homes, or the almost 30 percent of buyers whose mortgages either equal or exceed the value of what they own, the situation will be especially precarious.

America Fooled: The Truth About Antidepressants, Antipsychotics and How We've Been Deceived Dr. Timothy Scott See book keywords and concepts

Put it all together, and we find that a lack of self-discipline can make it more difficult for us to avoid bad habits, resist temptation, get our work done, make good grades, succeed academically, get better jobs, retain our jobs, make more money, control our weight, get adequate sleep, avoid credit card debt, keep our promises, be on time, get out of bed in the morning, maintain a friend's secret, control our mouths, master our tempers, get along with our family, not hit our spouses and not get depressed.

Big Pharma: free market economics run amok Mike Adams, the Health Ranger See article keywords and concepts

The people aren't any healthier (as a nation, we're sicker than ever), families have no more money (personal bankruptcies continue to skyrocket and family credit card debt is as record levels) and the nation is no wealthier than before (the U.S. government is not merely broke, it is spectacularly broke to the tune of trillions of dollars that politicians seem to conveniently forget). This isn't all due to Big Pharma, mind you, but with around 25% of GDP going to health-related expenditures in this country, it's a huge part of the problem.

Why used cars cost more to drive than new cars (and other uncommon personal finance advice) Mike Adams, the Health Ranger See article keywords and concepts

You can alter your financial future by wising up about how to deal with home mortgages, home loans, credit card debt, your personal credit rating, food purchasing and other discretionary purchases. If you're wise about it today, you can start saving money and, just as importantly, start finding ways to stop wasting your money on things like old cars.

The Rhodiola Revolution: Transform Your Health with the Herbal Breakthrough of the 21st Century Richard P. Brown, M.D., and Patricia L. Gerbarg, M.D. See book keywords and concepts

But others—taking on too many projects, running up credit card debt, making too many promises and commitments, and just plain overex-tending ourselves—are not. We need to get a better handle on these stressors, the ones we could do something about if only we would learn to say No, Later, or Let me think about it. How we respond to stress is a deciding factor in whether or not we're able to preserve our mental and emotional energy.

Book review: Rome Wasn't Burnt In A Day by Joe Scarborough Mike Adams, the Health Ranger See article keywords and concepts

It's the same mindset that we see in personal households in this country, where credit card debt is at an all time high and most people own nothing -- they only live paycheck to paycheck by delivering just-in-time checks to their mortgage company, car loan company, insurance companies and other corporations that hold the bulk of the hard assets in this country. People are just barely scraping by, and yet they are spending and consuming at record pace. They continue to buy new homes, new cars, and new consumer products at a pace that, frankly, they cannot afford.

The Longevity Code: Your Personal Prescription for a Longer, Sweeter Life Zorba Paster, M.D. and Susan Meltsner See book keywords and concepts

This sphere includes your job, your house, your bank account, your credit card debt, the brand-new thirty-thousand-dollar sport utility vehicle you just had to have or the three-thousand-dollar secondhand compact that you settled for after learning that your daughter needed braces on her teeth. As with the mind and body spheres, this one includes several components. First up is work, both the paid variety and voluntary activities that allow you to feel productive and part of a team, company, or community effort. Both have the potential to enhance or undermine the quality of your life.

Natural Cures Michael Castleman See book keywords and concepts

The same could be said for credit card debt or watching three hours of TV a night. How bad do things have to get before they should be changed? "It's up to the individual," Dr. Simons says, "but if any habit feels bad, it probably is bad." A habit becomes bad when it makes you feel out of control, when you keep doing it—or in the case of exercise, not doing it—despite the little voice inside you that says "Change this." One problem, according to specialists in addictions, is that people with bad habits often vehemently deny having a problem: "I'm not hooked on cocaine. I can stop any time.

As you prepare to lose weight, quit smoking, eliminate credit card debt or make other changes, a good way to begin is to maintain your bad habit without allowing it to get worse. If you're 40 pounds overweight, don't jump right into a weight-loss program. Instead, for a few months, maintain your current weight. If you smoke ten cigarettes a day, don't increase the number. Or if you owe $3,000 on your credit cards, maintain that level of debt. "Holding the line for six months is a real success," Dr. Wadden says. "It shows people that they have more control than they thought they had.

Part of cheering your own progress involves rewarding yourself, not with a hot fudge sundae if you're trying to lose weight or a shopping spree if you're trying to reduce credit card debt, but with little treats that reinforce your change efforts: a new pair of walking shoes or a phone call to tell an old friend about your progress. Pace your rewards so that you earn at least one a week. "Don't fall into the trap of saying, 'I'll do this or that after I've lost 30 pounds,'" Dr. Wadden says. "Buy some new clothes now. See the symphony next week. Take a vacation soon. You deserve it.

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ABOUT THE CREATOR OF NATURALPEDIA: Mike Adams, the creator of this NaturalNews Naturalpedia, is the editor of NaturalNews.com, the internet's top natural health news site, creator of the Honest Food Guide (www.HonestFoodGuide.org), a free downloadable consumer food guide based on natural health principles, author of Grocery Warning, The 7 Laws of Nutrition, Natural Health Solutions, and many other books available at www.TruthPublishing.com, creator of the earth-friendly EcoLEDs company (www.EcoLEDs.com) that manufactures energy-efficient LED lighting products, founder of Arial Software (www.ArialSoftware.com), a permission e-mail technology company, creator of the CounterThink Cartoon series (www.NaturalNews.com/index-cartoons.html) and author of over 1,500 articles, interviews, special reports and reference guides available at www.NaturalNews.com. Adams' personal philosophy and health statistics are available at www.HealthRanger.org.