Financial Illiteracy starts early

I think it's common knowledge that people can't write.  Nor can they spell.  Nor do they know the first thing about grammar.
But surely in our money-dependent world, you'd think we'd have SOME financial literacy skills?  Assuredly not.

Take this guy I know in class.  He's not a business major, so at least there's some consolation.  But he's doing some sort of international development thing.  You know, like helping third world countries become economically viable, that kind of stuff.

Somehow he thinks I know something about business things.  Hmm, can't think why.  Anyway, he sent me a desperate massage.  "Help!  I have this assignment due, and I have no idea what to do," he said. 

Well, he didn't exactly use those words.  But you get the point.

So, being the nice guy that I am, I asked him to show me what this crazy-ass problem was.

Here it goes:

Joe has $300 to spend.  He wants to buy some DVDs, which costs $10 each, and he also wants to buy some books, which costs $25 each.   If x is the number of DVDs he buys, and y is the number of books he buys, express his budgetary constraint in the form of an equation.

Part II.  If Joe decides to buy 10 books, how many DVDs can he buy?

OK, my friends.  That's basically the gist of it.  Something to that effect.

How could this become such a difficult task for my friend?  It didn't start at university.  This is something one should have picked up in fourth grade or something.  Seriously.  I did.  It's not his fault that he found this difficult.  It's the education system's fault.  It's the parents' fault.  Life is too easy for kids.

And in the end, they suffer the consequences.