Gallup Poll: Americans Falling Deeper into Debt

A new Gallup poll shows that not only are more Americans increasing their debts during this recession, fewer are climbing out of debt. For July, 27 percent of Americans said they were deeper in debt -- an increase since March, when the figure was at 21 percent. Similarly, 29 percent said they had managed to decrease their debt, but in March, that figure was over 33 percent.

Gallup put a positive spin on the news, saying the fact that consumers were using credit during the crunch was at least some good news for the economy. When viewed in combination with another figure from the poll, though -- that only 17 percent of Americans thought now was a good time to borrow money -- a bleaker possible message occurred to me. Fewer Americans want to borrow money, but more Americans are doing so, which could suggest that dependence on credit for daily necessities could also be behind the jump.