Barely Surviving on Credit Cards says:

No longer able to turn their homes for cash, Americans are increasingly using plastic to meet their basic living expenses. But many can't afford to pay the bills

Other sources of money for a lot of Americans are drying up," said Dick Reed, regional counseling manager of Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta, who sees more clients with mounting credit card debts these days. "Consumers just don't have a place to go to get money. They are digging themselves into a deeper hole not only to pay for normal living expenses, but to make minimum payments on outstanding debt