How severe should bankruptcy be for those who have to take it?

[Deja Q]

Not getting a house for 10 years as a result? Fine.
Higher interest rates for a car? Very fair, at least people are allowed to get one because they're a necessity in our society, not a luxury.
Getting new credit card enrollment forms? To be expected, more on that later...

BUT:

Not getting a job because of it? WRONG (unless it's in the banking industry doing accountant's work, I suppose).
Not getting an apartment because of it? VERY WRONG.
Insurance premiums skyrocket because of it? VERY VERY WRONG.

Especially if a chapter 13 plan (for wage earners who can pay back some of the debt) is accepted instead of a chapter 7 (clean slate wipe of all debt).

Isn't our society just great and the best in the world, especially how our society has driven many men far greater than me to this horrible alternative while targeting people to do the things which ultimately bring them to this point? (Nobody in schools teaches this sort of thing, Credit cards are predators to high school or college kids in ways that make pedophiles seem benevolent by comparison, one trip to the hospital can do it too - what's the point of living when you have to pay a $250,000 bill to some guy who probably screwed up anyway?! Sheesh, we can't even get refunds when the drugs they prescribe don't work. That makes them thieves as far as I'm concerned. But I digress.)

So far I personally don't need to go the route of bankruptcy, though for the next few years any stroke of bad luck will compel me to go through with it or fall on my proverbial sword. Given how the banks want to "reform" bankruptcy, I'd be better just to do chapter 13 now I suppose. How much worse can they make things for the people they exploit?

But one thing: Materialism and the acquisition of it stinks. There's got to be a better way. Teach that to the kids instead of influencing them to buy the mass media mush which is seen wrongfully as our 'culture'.

Do I see bankruptcy as immoral? Perhaps. Some would equate it as stealing (!!!). But in a society that encourages you to buy, buy, buy at every turn - and half the time won't give refunds, making stupid excuses to justify their stance (namely the fear of piracy or unauthorized duplication despite the sheer amount of copy protection schemes they also put into place...) I see bankruptcy as an equilibrium, balancing the two extremes our society bestows upon us. Any civilized society is going to be fair...

[DoNotRefill]

1. Bankruptcy isn't immoral...

unless the 13th amendment is immoral, and it isn't.

Without bankruptcy protection, what would we do? Go back to Debtor's prisons?

[Syncronaut Seven]

2. Debtors prison is back folks!!! No Shit!

HEALTH CARE - ARRESTING THE UNINSURED: The WSJ reports on a disturbing new offshoot of the problem of the growing masses of the uninsured: Jail time. According to the article, more and more hospitals are turning to the extreme practice of arresting patients who are unable to pay for their hospital care. (They also garnish wages and seize tax refunds.) At a time when "hospitals generally charge uninsured patients far more than the discounted rates" negotiated by insurance companies and "insurers and the government are cutting their reimbursement for services," hospitals are using drastic the collection tactic of "body attachments," or prison, shunned even by some of "the country's biggest commercial creditors." The number of uninsured in the country leapt to 43.6 million Americans in 2002.

[Droopy]

3. Sorry you're in that predicament

I've been through some financially trying times myself and I know how stressful that can be. But try the best you can to stay out of bankruptcy, not for any moral reasons, but just so you won't have the problems with credit that you've mentioned. They can be demoralizing and stressful, too.

[Blue-Jay]

4. Well....

Many companies don't run a credit check when they're looking to hire you. My company doesn't, and it's HUGE.

Getting an apartment? Some look, some don't. It's a dice roll, but you can still get a nice place. It doesn't hurt to try looking near a college.

As far as insurance goes; again some look, some don't. I'll assume you're talking auto or renter's insurance. Allstate looks, GEICO doesn't.

My day gig is in an insurance/financial field. Mostly running reports and answering questions from other workers. I'd advise trying to work out a payment schedule instead of filing BK. Most companies will work with you, if you give them the chance. Many will even settle for a percentage of what you owe them in order to avoid selling the debt to a collection agency. Try that first. If you DO file BK, you should still be able to find a place to live, get a job, and carry insurance, though. You just might need to look harder.

[SOteric]

5. So...You mean as an individual or a household, not a corporation?

Because I think there should be a very big difference, and often, -there's not.

[izzie]

6. We could send them to the Out Back?

Am I to believe that if you owe a lot of money it is not Anerican? Now that is funny.