Kiplinger has a post about earning a guaranteed 18%. While great linkbait, it is also a tad misleading. The post says that by paying down your credit cards you can earn 18% by not paying interest. Well, to me that is saving 18%, not earning it.

They also go on to say:

And if you’re itching to put $1,000 into stocks, think of it this way: The interest you’d pay on that balance would almost certainly cancel out the return you’d make on $1,000 invested in the market in a year.

Hmm, well I suppose that might be true if you don’t pick good stocks. I managed 20% in under eight weeks on two stocks, Apple and National-Oilwell Varco in a mere 38 days.

That isn’t to say that paying down or paying off your credit cards isn’t a bad of course.