As recently as thirty years ago, many Americans believed that using credit was an unwise and (36) ________ way to pay for what they bought. Some even thought that owing money to a store or a credit company was something to be (37) ________ of. Good citizens, they believed, always bought what they wanted with real money and they paid the full price (38) ________. Today, however, all that has changed. Credit, as some (39) ________ have noted, has become a way of life in the United States. More and more Americans now are depending on those small pieces of plastic, credit cards, to pay for large (40) ________ such as televisions, record-players or (41) ________. Many people today would consider it unusual not to use a credit card to pay for a costly (42) ________ dinner, a hotel room or an airline trip. And there are some (43) ________ in which Americans must have credit cards. If they want the temporary use of a car, for example, they first must give the car rental company the number of their credit card, (44) ________________________________. Credit cards offer two major services to Americans. First of all, they are easier and safer to carry than large amounts of money. Second, they permit people to borrow, to have the immediate pleasure of owning something, even if they do not have enough money to pay for it at the time. (45) __________________________________. And when the time does come to pay, most credit cards offer people a choice. (46) _________________________________.