If you think high levels of indebtedness is an American problem you might want to take a look at this poster that I photographed with my cell phone in one of the banks we use. There is a picture of a big ram and the words, "For a successful Holiday." The holiday is the upcoming Tabaski which commemorates the Biblical story of the near sacrifice of Abraham's son and God's provision of a ran in his place. There is a slight difference in the Muslim version as the son spared was Ishmael not Isaac, but otherwise the same.
The difference in debt in America and here is that here you take out debt not necessarily to buy a house of car, but so that you can invite all of your family and friends over (with a focus on those who are not able to afford it themselves) and you throw a party in which everyone eats! There are a lot of commentaries that could be made, but maybe the simplest one is that a good party is a valuable thing.
