And it won't get better, either

MSNBC:

The proportion of consumers behind on their credit card bills remained near record-high levels in the July-September period as high gasoline prices and rising interest rates continued to put stress on personal budgets.

The American Bankers Associated reported Tuesday that the percentage of credit card accounts 30 or more days past due dipped slightly to 4.74 percent in the July-September quarter after having hit an all-time high of 4.81 percent in the spring.

Even with the slight decline, consumer card delinquencies in the late summer and early fall were at the third-highest level on record, prompting concerns about more problems to come.

With rising interest rates and most credit card companies intending to increase minimum payments due, Americans already hip deep in debt are about to go in up to their eyeballs. Personal savings has hit negative levels, meaning that these folks aren't going to be able to help themselves anytime soon, either. And with it a whole lot harder to file for bankruptcy nowadays, a lot of these folks won't come up for air for a long time to come.