Credit cards are bad news for college students. The concept is dangerous for people who haven’t figured out the intricacies of money management.

However, the recent proposal in the U.S. Senate to ban credit card usage for citizens under the age of 21 is a bark up the wrong tree.

The plan, which was an amendment to the Senate’s Truth in Lending Act, would require anyone under 21 to have parental consent or proof of financial independence to obtain a credit card.

Why is it that when our nation’s lawmakers get together to solve a problem, they spend months just to settle on the first bad idea they conjured up?

True, credit cards are a problem for young people. The average college undergraduate owes $2,200 to credit card companies and the average graduate student owes $5,800, according to Nellie Mae, the nation’s largest student loan maker.

The problem with plastic isn’t caused by youth. If you’re reckless with your money at 18, chances are you will be at 21 as well.

The problem is the overzealousness of companies hawking cards to youth and preying on the lack of financial maturity and responsibility afflicting the whole country, not just college students.

These card companies will do anything to make a buck. There have actually been cases where mentally handicapped individuals have run up thousands of dollars worth of debt because they unwittingly signed up for a card over the phone.

What we need is for the government to step in and shut down these modern loan sharks by kicking them off our phone lines and off our campuses.

If someone needs a credit card and is responsible, he can find one on his own.

The problem with credit card debt among youths clearly won’t be solved by banning them until a random age.

It will only be conquered when Congress decides to think about the laws they are proposing before inking them.