Coming to terms with financial literacy in America. Have we been honest with ourselves about our finances?

The financial fortune and misfortune of being born in America

I'm a very fortunate person. I was born in America, and have always had food, clothing and shelter. I have had a decent education, am a college graduate, and a professional. My IQ is above average, and I come from an upper middle class family. Yet, somewhere along the way, I missed out on some vital information about how to manage, create and save money. It appears to me that there are some crucial components missing from our education in America, both inside and outside of the classroom.

Budget? Mortgage? Interest? I'd rather go with financing, credit cards and loans!

No one ever told me that every day of your entire life, you will be affected by your abilities and understanding of finances. That money truly is equated with security, stability, and determines the choices you have available to you each day of your life. What I learned about money was very abstract, something that I would "know" when I was an adult. I've been an adult now for quite awhile and I apparently missed out on something.

What it looks like, is that a lot of us (Americans) missed the boat on money intelligence. We were a wealthy country- with social security, retirement plans, credit cards and big houses that gave us a false sense of security. We didn't know enough about saving. We couldn't begin to relate to the depression that our grandparents had endured. In fact, we looked at their ideas of money as a bit unsophisticated, naive... quaint, even.

The generation that "got it" and could have guided Americans in financial stability and prosperity was ignored

So many in the generation that lived through the depression worked a job that wasn't necessarily personally fulfilling, but they were grateful that they had a job, just to pay bills and have a retirement fund. Saving and buying things like cars with cash? Sacrificing their standard of living with rationing during the war? Clipping coupons, or saving a little stash under the mattress even? They did all of these things because they understood the nature of the "beast". They had been around long enough to know that the new generation was a little short sighted and more than a little arrogant. We didn't understand the consequences of buying a house with a big mortgage, or student loans or putting vacations on credit cards because we "deserved" it. We have rights, after all; to have a job, nice clothes, big home, flat screen tv, a couple of kids and a minivan. We seemed to have attained all of those things, but it came with a hefty price no one bargained for ; a load of debt ready to crush us as a country.

Financial rewind button, please-

Our economy has taken a beating, and people like myself are having to take a good, hard look at the deliberate choices we've made with our money. Using money wisely, making good decisions, planning, saving, scrimping, and no longer looking at our budget as a magically ascending or descending number in our bank account- but as something concrete- which we either learn to control, or allow it to control our lives.

Why do we not teach basic finances used every day in life, throughout the school years?

Why aren't we teaching basic financial intelligence from the moment our kids step in the classroom? If anything is applicable and indispensable in our daily adult lives, it is finances. In our current school system, students attain concepts in math like addition, subtraction, multiplication, algebra, geometry, etc. Yet, the first real life adult situation we are faced with related to math is personal finance. Taxes, student loans, a bank account, buying a home, credit cards, investing, saving, budgeting - all require a breadth of knowledge and set of solid financial skills, and all of which are largely overlooked as an integral part of education in public schools today. We teach our children to get an education so that they can get a job, so that they can make enough money to have a standard of living, and hopefully keep up with the rate of rising prices. We teach them reading, math, history and science, but neglect to teach them to make money work for them. And because we don't, the middle class of America is unable to shift the tired and broken paradigm of working for your money. We need to teach ourselves how to make our money work for us.

In the United States of America, graduates of high school still have difficulty computing a percent off sale at a clothing store or a tip for the waitress. Most come out of school not having any real financial "savvy" unless someone at home has taught them. Why don't we learn to balance checkbooks in 4th grade, how to invest and take on risk in the stock market in 6th grade, learn how to create and stick to a budget and depreciation of new cars in 9th grade, financial pros and cons of renting or owning a home and income taxes in 12th? Wouldn't it be prudent to require college graduates to learn exactly how much they must put away when they begin working to retire safely? To retire and travel? To send their children to college and retire? Or just how much it costs every year to raise a child up with basic middle class standards and privileges like nutritious meals and extracurricular activities?

How we got here and how we change our collective financial thought process

Our country is in the economic state it's in because of our irresponsibility, indulgence, ignorance and not understanding properly the concept of personal finances and economics. We need to help the new generations steer this country in the right direction financially by guiding them early and consistently in the responsibilities of money management. But first, we have to educate and practice financial literacy and responsibility ourselves.