"Keeping up with the influencers"

You know how once in a while, you stumble upon a video that rivets you in horrified fascination, and subsequently it takes you down a rabbit hole of binge-watching similar videos? This just happened to me.

To back up somewhat: Most readers know something about our fiscal history. (If not, a synopsis can be read here.) In our younger years, we got ourselves deeper in debt than we were comfortable with, though never to the point of not being able to pay our bills. We always paid our bills, but there were times we were very, very tight financially. This is one of the reasons we're huge fans of thrift stores and a cash-only lifestyle. The debt we had was all for "legitimate" cost-of-living expenses as we raised our girls, but it was still debt.

The result of many years of financial uncertainty has left me with something akin to a pathological fear of debt. The peace of mind that comes with not owing any money is hard to describe.

So when I came across a random video entitled "Let's Watch 25 Minutes of People Living Above Their Means & Going BROKE" by someone called Zac Rios, I clicked.

Oh my.

All this guy does, as far as I know, is trawl around social media, gathering up videos of people confessing (or bragging) about how much money they've spent that landed them in astronomical debt, how hard they try to justify it, and apparently why they refuse to change their ways.

Mr. Rios admits one of his reasons for posting these videos is to get viewers "scared straight" about their own spending habits. He says if he were to don a suit and tie and stand in front of a white board giving an economics lesson, most people would tune out. But this – these naked, raw, real testimonies of people who are ruining their lives through financial illiteracy – is eye-opening. Watching clip after clip after clip after clip is like watching a train wreck. I couldn't look away.

Make no mistakes: The people putting these videos on the internet are not lamenting their poverty or the hardships they're experiencing due to medical expenses, job loss, disability, or other unavoidable factors beyond their control. Instead, the clips profile people who simply spent too much on every passing "want" and either don't know or don't care that they'll never get out from under the resulting crushing debt.

Among the factors involved in these irrational decisions:

• YOLO (You Only Live Once) or "doom" spending

• Social media fueled by influencers

• The "image is everything" mindset

• Instant gratification

Influencers seem to be a major factor in this overspending trend. Having watched a number of these videos, it's clear the host focuses on living beyond one's means as a lifestyle choice, rather than genuine economic hardship. Mr. Rios explains how some of these people make staggering amounts of money, and then spend to keep up appearances. But for most, the length of time an influencer actually influences is very brief. They think it will last forever and it doesn't. As a result, many current and former influencers are economically in way over their financial heads, let alone those who watch them.

Viewer comments could be blunt:

 • "Truly a case of 'Buying stuff you don't need with money you don't have to impress people you don't like.'"

• "What a world. Having $1.26 in your bank account and no debt makes you richer than 75% of the country."

• "Lots of people claim they're just living in the moment and don't understand the piper must be paid at some point."

• "The weirdest part of it is how they believe massive debt is a flex."

The incomparable Amy Dacyczyn, author of "Tightwad Gazette," once said that if you write down every single penny you spend, you can skip buying her book because you'll already know what you're spending your money on. This simple piece of advice seems to elude those mired down in YOLO-fueled spending.

Look, today's uncertain economy – with elevated prices for everything from food to property – is tough enough as it is. It's getting more difficult for ordinary Americans to scrape by on incomes that used to be adequate.The younger generation is facing an uphill battle when it comes to achieving the milestones their parents and grandparents were able to achieve. No one denies this.

But ... this level of self-inflicted financial sabotage is hard to grasp. Kudos to Mr. Rios for  attempting to "scare straight" those who need it.