If you usually toss the junk letters that come from credit card companies, the ones with all kinds of offers and those seductive checks urging you to go on a spending spree, beware! I was shocked to see Discover card was raising it's default rate to 42%. They also had an across the board increase regardless of your good payment history etc. My APR went from 13% to 22%. I don't usually carry a very large balance on cards and always pay on time, so I was outraged. Customer service wasn't impressed, so I closed my account with them. If you send them a letter in writing, you can keep y0ur original APR. But this information was sent in a letter, not with my monthly statement, so how many people tossed them out thinking they were junk mail? I can't believe there isn't some kind of law against raising these APRs and default rates in such large increments. Every day you hear about the suffering of working class families. Having their credit card rates skyrocket like this has deep repercussions. Many people are already at the edge of their credit limits. Now they will never be able to get out from under. And how will this affect the economy? People will obviously have to spend less. Those of us who can afford it, pay off our balances quickly, but I feel really badly for those can't. Congress held a hearing about this. I watched it, and it seemed like the the credit card companies were being raked over the coals for all their devious sales practices. Now this comes along? Soon you'll be better off borrowing from Mafia loan sharks at these rates. Where is this Congress when it counts? Why aren't the presidential candidates talking about protecting the working class from these kinds of practices? I'm wondering if this has affected the stock market? Already home foreclosures are soaring. Now people will be even more strapped and will therefore spend less money. Certainly not good news for retailers.