4 ms·

U.S. Marshals Are Arresting People in Texas Who Have Outstanding Student Loans

14 points by apsec112 11y ago

api 11y ago
Entry into the middle class is now gated by a system of indenture in which you must purchase on non-bankruptable debt a certificate to be considered for a middle class job. (... unless your parents are rich or you're part of the small percentage who qualify for non-trivial student aid or scholarships.)
- gravypod 11y ago
  You can also join the militarily or devote half your time to applying to scholarships. I know people who have done both. Paying for college has many different opportunities, you don't need to pay with loans. That is just the most "convenient" thing to do. Hell, I'm even doing it!
  - ap3 11y ago
    Or work and save money for college Or go to a community college Or go to a local state college Nope, get a loan
    - gravypod 11y ago
      Yea. I feel upset about my situation but when I objectively look at how I got here I understand that it, in my situation, was a 'choice'.
sremani 11y ago
This has been debunked, the dude was wanted for not showing up for the court multiple times for a loan he took at a later date. This is being overly exaggerated. edit: I cannot find the link right now, but chron or some houston based tv channel had an article about it.
- viraptor 11y ago
  Can you give us relevant links to the debunking?
  - glibgil 11y ago
    https://www.google.com/search?q=Paul+Aker+%22debunked%22 https://www.google.com/search?q=Paul+Aker+%22debunked%22
    - mentat 11y ago
      I don't read the top result as a debunking. If they can arrest you for failing to show up in court related to a unpaid student debt, that seems equivalent to being able to arrest you for an unpaid student debt.
      - dragonwriter 11y ago
        No, you can be arrested for failure to appear in court when summoned regardless of the basis, even if the basis of the summons is not itself an arrestable offense. Further, the summons wasn't about student loan debt, per se, it was about an unpaid default judgement. What led to the arrest wasn't the student loan debt, it was a series of failures to follow court orders or even respond to lawsuits. Constitutionally, you cannot be arrested for inability to pay a debt (including a student loan debt) in the US. There are a whole lot of real problem cases of systems set up in such a way that one could argue that people are, in fact, arrested for what amounts to inability to pay a debt, and that's a real problem (John Oliver did a good piece on this a while back) -- but this isn't one of them. This is someone arrested for just ignoring court orders and hoping they would magically go away. The fact that the orders ultimately stem from a student loan debt is rather beside the point.
        MrTonyD 11y ago
        That the court order stems from a student loan debt is not beside the point. It is the exact point.
DrScump 11y ago
Article with context: http://www.texasmonthly.com/the-daily-post/whats-really-going-on-with-student-loan-debt-collection-in-texas http://www.texasmonthly.com/the-daily-post/whats-really-goin... Original discussion, 70+ comments: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11110473 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11110473

14 points by apsec112 11y ago

api 11y ago

Entry into the middle class is now gated by a system of indenture in which you must purchase on non-bankruptable debt a certificate to be considered for a middle class job. (... unless your parents are rich or you're part of the small percentage who qualify for non-trivial student aid or scholarships.)

gravypod 11y ago
You can also join the militarily or devote half your time to applying to scholarships. I know people who have done both. Paying for college has many different opportunities, you don't need to pay with loans. That is just the most "convenient" thing to do. Hell, I'm even doing it!
- ap3 11y ago
  Or work and save money for college Or go to a community college Or go to a local state college Nope, get a loan
  - gravypod 11y ago
    Yea. I feel upset about my situation but when I objectively look at how I got here I understand that it, in my situation, was a 'choice'.

sremani 11y ago

This has been debunked, the dude was wanted for not showing up for the court multiple times for a loan he took at a later date. This is being overly exaggerated. edit: I cannot find the link right now, but chron or some houston based tv channel had an article about it.

viraptor 11y ago
Can you give us relevant links to the debunking?
- glibgil 11y ago
  https://www.google.com/search?q=Paul+Aker+%22debunked%22 https://www.google.com/search?q=Paul+Aker+%22debunked%22
  - mentat 11y ago
    I don't read the top result as a debunking. If they can arrest you for failing to show up in court related to a unpaid student debt, that seems equivalent to being able to arrest you for an unpaid student debt.
    - dragonwriter 11y ago
      No, you can be arrested for failure to appear in court when summoned regardless of the basis, even if the basis of the summons is not itself an arrestable offense. Further, the summons wasn't about student loan debt, per se, it was about an unpaid default judgement. What led to the arrest wasn't the student loan debt, it was a series of failures to follow court orders or even respond to lawsuits. Constitutionally, you cannot be arrested for inability to pay a debt (including a student loan debt) in the US. There are a whole lot of real problem cases of systems set up in such a way that one could argue that people are, in fact, arrested for what amounts to inability to pay a debt, and that's a real problem (John Oliver did a good piece on this a while back) -- but this isn't one of them. This is someone arrested for just ignoring court orders and hoping they would magically go away. The fact that the orders ultimately stem from a student loan debt is rather beside the point.
      - MrTonyD 11y ago
        That the court order stems from a student loan debt is not beside the point. It is the exact point.

DrScump 11y ago

Article with context: http://www.texasmonthly.com/the-daily-post/whats-really-going-on-with-student-loan-debt-collection-in-texas http://www.texasmonthly.com/the-daily-post/whats-really-goin... Original discussion, 70+ comments: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11110473 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11110473