But of course I'm from that evil "personal responsibility" camp so I should be immediately ignored.

Actually, Ford was pointing out that personal responsibility goes both ways.

If your six best friends have loaned money to Jim and Jim has stiffed them, how smart is it for you to go ahead and loan Jim money? Yes, he's shirking his personal responsibilities when he stiffs you as well. But you're shirking yours by lending to him in the first place, and I'm not going to weep for you (or change any federal laws) when you complain about the money you lost.

IOW, your stupidity is no excuse for his greed and irresponsibility. But neither is his irresponsibility to blame for your stupidity.

BTW, I use my rewards card every chance I get. But you can bet I check my balance on-line several times a week, and I verify my due date every time. I'll take their money, but I don't trust them an inch.

-lizmonster