Alva Review-Courier -

Civil War Admiral David Farragut said, “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!”

With inflation at over 7 percent, spending was still up this holiday season. I know there was no slack in gifting at the Chaffee household with photo evidence of a packed pickup going to the family Christmas.

Economists believe that many presents were purchased with credit cards, driving record sales. Interest rates have risen too, so consumer spending, the driver of our economy, may have topped out.

In today’s world, credit is based on many factors including your payment record, account balances, number of accounts...