The People's Bailout

[Miss Absynthe]

::bumping the actual threads so that they're slightly easier to find in amongst the flood of spam... mmm... spam.::

[Despanan]

To so I took Sternn's criticism to Occupy tactics and Strikedebt (the guys who came up with this) There are a number of problems with what you asserted Sterrn. I don't have time to go into all of them now but here are some quick one's:

1) Occupy is targeting student loan debt and medical debt. Student loan Debt never goes away no matter how long you wait. Declairing bankruptcy won't help you either, and 7 years negligence won't shut it down.

2) Even if 7 years DO shut it down (in the case of some medical debt) the only way for this to happen is if you have absolutely no contact with your creditors for seven years. If you talk to them and make any effort to pay back anything you're sent right back to square 1 and have to wait another 7 years. Most folks aren't educated about this stuff and are easily tricked into making contact over and over.

3) Strikedebt isn't just about getting people out of debt, but educating them about what is done with their debt. This isn't charity, it's radical mutual aid designed to assail the idea that decent people always pay their debts. Buy purchasing and canceling their debt for pennies on the dollar it sends a clear, message of just what is wrong with the whole concept of debt in a real visceral way that a pamphlet or website cannot, and as the cost of creating and distributing this information is comparable to buying the debt ANYWAY, the people's bailout fits easily into our diversity of tactics.

Even if banks make a little bit of money from the purchases of the cancelled debt, the propagandic power of purchasing and canceling it is much more dangerous to their interests on a structural level than simply playing by their rules and waiting for the debt to run out or appealing to the state via bankruptcy.

The very fact that ordinary citizens and "penniless jobless hippies" have the power to cancel thousands of dollars of debt for insanely less than what that debt is worth is destructive to the illusion that banks and creditors and the state have worked so hard to create.

There's more, but that's it for now.

[Miss Absynthe]

I also thought that if you declared bankruptcy that there is the chance that the court might institute a payment plan for your debt.. so for instance, you might end up with a court order to pay the creditors $20 a month, which is going to mean that each month you have $20 less.. but also ensures that each month there is contact made and the 7 year count doesn't start.

The 7 years sounds a bit like a unicorn.

[lotan]

Originally Posted by Miss Absynthe

I think that it's an amazing thing.. and I can't imagine the relief that people would feel knowing that they aren't going to be harassed by debt collectors anymore.

I think that a lot of people would also enjoy the sense of personal agency that would be afforded them by being able to pay just a little bit to the cause so that others are helped the same way that they've been.

I think that this is probably the best thing that I've read in a few months. Thank you.

I agree; it's the best thing I have read in some time; totally positive. The idea of then having those helped, helping others is even greater. Awesome.

[Despanan]

Well, rolling jubilee has officially launched and gone viral:

http://www.sparrowmedia.net/2012/11/...oples-bailout/

So far 100K of medical debt has been eliminated for around 5 grand.

[BourbonBoy]

That's fucking awesome Despanan.

[lotan]

Medical debt - awesome - if your illness doesn't kill you, the debt will.

[Despanan]

The rolling Jubilee is now up to $500,000 for Strike Debt, with which we will be eliminating 10 Million in medical debt.


I am so goddamn proud of these guys.