Credit Cards the new "Big Oil"?

Unreal. This article was in my inbox this morning from Marketing Daily: Can Credit Card Brands Weather Debt’s Image Problem? Wow, debt has an image problem? Apparently debt needs a makeover and some shiny new trainers. While of course I think it would be a boon to consumer lifestyles to observe a little more thrift, if American Express and Visa begin to be vilified along the same lines as Big Oil, we’ll be missing the point. It’s our spending that has us held over a barrel to the plastic, not the MasterCard priceless ads. The article bemoans a resurgence of cash, but is doubtful it will occur:

“Besides, unlike smoking and other personal habits that have fallen out of fashion, plastic is a little confusing--no one standing behind you at the Cineplex knows if you are financially intact and using a debit card as an electronic convenience, or a reckless spender juggling balances on eight cards. She doesn't expect much of a change in consumer behavior, although many advocates recommend using cash as a way to regain a sense of control over spending. "We've gone too far in the way of plastic-people perceive credit cards as safer, more convenient," she says. "I doubt cash will make a comeback."