For the uninitiated, "payday lending" is an industry that provides short-term loans that are generally due when the borrower receives his next paycheck. For this "service," the borrower pay an outrageous interest rate, generally 10-30 dollars per 100 dollars borrowed, a steep rate for a 14-day loan. Advocates of increased regulation of the payday lending industry frequently point out that, annualized, the interest rates on these loans frequently runs high into the triple-digits. The Consumer Federation of America reports that the average annual interest rate on these loans is 470%.

It seems that, these days, you will make very few friends as an apologist for the payday lending industry. To help battle its hugely negative image, the industry trade group, The Community Financial Services Association of America, has launched a nationwide advertising campaign, and promised to give borrowers more time to pay off loans. Thirteen states have effectively banned payday lending, although Georgia is currently mulling allowing it again. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 52 payday-loan related bills have been introduced in state legislatures.