Earlier quoted context omitted.
> He had some massive college bills too and i didnt understand how those worked, but you cant get rid of them like you can a car loan. This is the thing that is really the most shameful and outrageous thing about the US system. Our entire K-12 educational system and our culture is set up to paint a college degree as a ticket to "the good life". Then an 18-year-old, potentially with parents who aren't great at math bu…
> There's a reason many ancient religions forbid loaning money at interest entirely; and it's the same reason we have bankruptcy laws. The Catholic Church condemns usury as intrinsically evil because, in the words of Aquinas, usury is to "sell what does not exist". [1] Aquinas observed that some goods are consumed by their very use, such as food or drink. Allowing someone to use such a good is equivalent to transferr…
When Aquinas was alive, there was nothing remotely similar to modern banking. Money was lent at punitive rates of interest (20% or more/year), with very little regulation concerning what rights creditors had if debtors couldn't pay. As an example, look at mortgages today; in many states, these are non-recourse, meaning the law limits the borrower's liability to the mortgaged property (the house), and nothing more. People aren't sold into slavery, there are no debtors prisons, and we have a sophisticated system of personal bankruptcy that lets people start over.
In short, if you can't pay a loan, you aren't getting your kneecaps broken or getting sold into slavery. In my view, that's a game-changer.