when someone can't pay their debts in the US, people declare bankruptcy which is probably annoying (i've never done it but i assume it is). sure, their credit rating takes a hit, but these days no one is applying for a loan or credit card anyway.
there's no moral hazard for borrowing tons of money and then not paying it off. if i graduated college in 2005, rang up 100k in credit card debt by partying like a rockstar and never working, i would have no downside. ultimately, the US taxpayers end up footing the bill when the credit card is defaulted on and the banks take government money.
if the US taxpayer ends up paying the debt of these people, the US taxpayer should get some work out of them.
with all these public works projects coming, instead of forgiving the debt, give these people jobs at a sustenance level building roads and bridges until they've paid off the debt they forced us to shoulder. their debt would be paid when: going wage per hour - sustenance level per hour x hours = their debt.
the US already incarcerates people for fraud. how is their borrowing and failing to pay back any different than fraud? the US also jails people for failure to pay child support and alimony. and in a way, forcing the US taxpayer to pay their debts amounts to taking money away from education and other social goods. if this practice were instituted, defaults on loans and credit cards would be drastically reduced - people would be more cautious and/or they would work like crazy to figure out how to pay it off.
and we would have better roads and bridges.
No comments:
Post a Comment