@Danny: I certainly do believe that you need to establish a credit rating if you plan to do things like buy cars & houses and all the other things we generally need loans for. It's so important to establish a good history before you walk into the bank for that loan. And you're also right - kids are being given credit cards but often don't understand how they're supposed to use them, or don't have the discipline to use them correctly, thus doing more damage than good.

As Jtimberman said, you can just control spending by cutting up the cards and closing the accounts, but I wonder if that's a bit short-sighted too. Just because you might have a weakness for whipping out the credit card when you are in ABC store doesn't mean you shouldn't have credit cards at all.

I have a horrible memory, and often forget things I need to do, chores, etc. But that doesn't mean I'm too irresponsible to do the vaccuming.....I just need to work around my forgetfulness by leaving notes around the house, or some other creative tool to help keep me on track.

I view this little tip as just one of those creative tools to keep us on track if we know we're the sort that can wander a bit.