College Credit That Fails Students: “Big lenders, such as Sallie Mae, even persuaded Congress to remove bankruptcy protections for private loans in 2005 — these are the nongovernmental loans we’ve been hearing about lately, whose interest rates can exceed 18%. Credit card companies and payday lenders could only dream of this kind of congressional giveaway.”

Does America Need A Recession?: “But should a central bank always try to avoid recessions? Some economists argue that this could create a much wider form of moral hazard. If long periods of uninterrupted expansions lead people to believe that the Fed can prevent any future recession, consumers, firms, investors and borrowers will be encouraged to take bigger risks, borrowing more and saving less.”

Your House Is Worth Less? Good: “So why is the real estate collapse a good thing? First, because the collapse of any financial bubble can be interpreted as a morality play: greed gets its comeuppance.”

Drive your car to death, save $31,000: “By keeping your car for 15 years, or 225,000 miles of driving, you could save nearly $31,000, according to Consumer Reports magazine. That’s compared to the cost of buying an identical model every five years, which is roughly the rate at which most car owners trade in their vehicles.”

And for those who need a bit more reading, some carnivals from the past week:

• Frugality
• Green
• Money Stories
• Personal Finance