To actually stem the tide of debt, which is higher than ever before -- and which seriously threatens the economy's ability to grow -- government needs to change the habits of both consumers and credit card companies, experts say. Responsibility needs to be shared.

Congress could start by forcing credit card issuers to include information on the terms of what are essentially high-interest loans. "It would take 30 years to pay off $2,500 in credit card debt if you pay the minimum 2 percent," Warren says. "Credit card statements should contain that information."

Limits on distribution must also be put in place, she and others insist. Credit card companies are arguing for a contradictory and unreasonable privilege: "They want an unregulated market for distribution, but they also want the government to act as a collection agent when their customers get into trouble. It's wrong. They can't have it both ways." Lois Brady, a trustee in the Oakland, Calif., bankruptcy court who handles about 50 cases per month, couldn't agree more.

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"I see retired people in here, people on welfare -- how is that possible?" she asks. "Why can they get $50,000 credit lines when they make less than $20,000 a year? It's just criminal."

Is the credit card industry primarily to blame? Justin isn't so sure. He accepts the blame for ending up so far in debt, and says that the current bankruptcy process seems far too lenient. His case has yet to be heard by a trustee, but chances are good that all of his debts will be wiped away. He simply has to prove that he intended to pay his debts and didn't make any rash purchases before filing for bankruptcy. When that's established, Justin will be able to walk away.

His total cost: a few years of damaged credit and about $7,500 -- $500 to a lawyer who filed the paperwork and the $7,000 he paid to credit card companies over the past two years. And the bankruptcy trustee appointed to his case might even let him keep his stock portfolio.

"I can see where the credit card companies are coming from," says Justin, referring to their attempt to enlist Washington in their collection efforts. But he also believes that it's not fair to focus only on debtors' culpability.

"Who in their right mind would extend $100,000 in credit to someone who makes a third of that?" he says. "You have to wonder why a company that knows what I earn kept giving me more credit. They have computers; they know what's going on. If you had all that information, would you give your friend a loan? I wouldn't. They shouldn't either."

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