Pictures Don't Lie

They may not lie, but they can sure paint a misleading picture! Take this example from BMO Nesbitt Burns:

Chart 2 looks like a runaway train! Debt will soon overwhelm us... head for the hills, save the women & children, batten down the hatches... oh wait, Chart 3 says that the actual cost of carrying that debt is in line with the pattern over the last 28 years. OK, up a bit over the last 5 years but below what it was in the early 1990s. So maybe we don't need to stockpile beef jerky and water, grab a gun, and head for the hills. Maybe Chart 2 isn't the end of the world after all.