Oprah Sucks...

Ok, not really. Just her show. Which I don’t normally watch. Earlier this week I was duped into taping an episode with the promise that, “if you are in debt you can’t afford to miss this episode.” Of course, I thought this was a good idea. I’m in debt, so I figured she would be offering up some good information. So, I tape the episode and a couple days later sat down to watch it. All the while thinking there would be some good info for people in debt (not that I don’t know how to manage my debt mind you, but knowledge is power). I couldn’t have been more wrong. This was more worthless than the episode she had a year or two ago about people that became millionaires. Let me digress and briefly recap that old episode:

Oprah: So how did you get started?

Guest: Well I had an idea, I worked at it, made these teddy bears, and now I’m filthy fuckin’ rich.
(keep in mind this particular guest had already had a lucrative career in the business world, big time stockbroker or CEO or something like that)

Oprah: Isn’t that great everybody?!?!

*audience screaming & applause*

And it pretty much went on like that every few minutes for the whole episode. Oprah speaks to guest, guest responds, Oprah responds and the audience goes ape shit for what seems like waaaaaay too long. I should have learned my lesson then. By contrast, several years ago she actually had a similar show about this where Robert Kiyosaki actually offered some real advice. At least, some more than just, “you can do it.” Which brings me to this past weeks episodes...

It started off interestingly enough. Black couple living the american dream. Working class husband and wife. They both work. Have a nice house. Nice cars. Husband makes the bulk of the money. Wife keeps the house running (i.e. keeps the bills paid). There income combined is well over 100K and hubby has something like $60K or $80K in the 401K. Doing pretty well for themselves. Except wifey has a secret. Something horrible and potentially devastating to their relationship. Hmm, this is Oprah and it’s a show about debt. So I guess she didn’t use to be a man and she’s probably not cheating on him. She agonized and cried and physically made herself sick for the first 15 to 20 minutes of the show. Apparently they weren’t as debt free as hubby thought they were (he himself claims to be completely debt free). See hubby thought that with the house and car notes they were in the hole about $40. Um, yeah think again. They are in it for about $160K. Given wifey’s credit cards and student loans with their ever accruing interest (I’m feeling her on that one but she got me bet, easy) they are in deep. Hubby had no idea. At all. He was shocked, stunned and every other word you can think of. And what does Oprah do? She explains that she wasn’t out to ambush him or embarrass them. It’s not that kind of show. So she brings out Dave Ramsey. He wrote a book about being rich then poor then rich again. So he is an expert on debt. And what does he do? Basically, he explains to them, for the reminder of their time on the show, that they can deal with this, get passed it, and work it out. But they will have to work together. And he will help them after the show. Um, WHAT. THE. FUCK?

That was it? That was his big advice? This is why people in debt should watch this show? They can’t be serious. Maybe they will save the good stuff for last. One more family to go. This will be brief...

Ok, the first half hour was useless. Second half brings a new family. Affluent, white family of four. One son (16) and one daughter (17). With credit cards and absolutely no concept of work, working, or where money comes from. None what so ever. Buying shoes, Prada bags, and lunch for their friends like their credit limit was free refills of coke at Applebee’s that someone else bought them. And the parents are at their wits end as to what to do about it. The father is completely incapacitated not speaking more than 2 words the whole show. The mother just going on and on about how great her kids are. No discipline problems, straight A’s, never getting into trouble, just great, great, great (Oh, and they each have brand new cars because the parents want them to be safe [forget the fact that daughter completely totaled her first one after something like a month no less]). Except, they are spoiled fuckin’ rotten and incapable of surviving in the real world with out leeching off of Mommy and Daddy. Oprah and Dave pretty much told them this. And what was Dave Debt Experts advise? Of course, since it was mostly about the kids for this fam, he encouraged them to teach them discipline, make them work, learn about money, blah, blah, blah... Ultimately, it boiled down to you can deal with this, get passed it, and work it out. Not to mention the parents apparent resistance to any idea that there is something wrong with this. But that’s ok, cause Dave is going to work with them after the show too. Um, Shows over folks.

And this is the show people in debt needed to see? Why? So we can feel better about our own situation? I was so pissed after watching this crap. I could have learned more passing the time on the internet then the hour I spent on this drivel. I expect something more informative from Oprah than this. But, then again, I blame that on Robert Kiyosaki...