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Using debt for homes, cars, education, and investments are generally assumed to be able to out grow the costs of that borrowing. For example, ideally a better e

Using debt for homes, cars, education, and investments are generally assumed to be able to out grow the costs of that borrowing. For example, ideally a better education now means you can probably make more money over time, offsetting those costs and overall ending up much better than without borrowing. Its not stealing, to phrase like that is wrong. If you only see these things as "nice", your should reevaluate what you value.

thatoneuser 8y ago
Personally I think we view education entirely too much as an individual responsibility. The worker isn’t the only one who benefits from the education. Companies, investors and society at large does too. So to push that cost entirely onto the individual and force a possible lifetime of debt is unreasonable. And that’s only possible because of debt. Housing and cars - I’d agree. But for me the problem with debt is it seems like a ploy to squeeze more and more out of people who don’t realize the deal, or who because of encroaching levels of debt don’t have a choice in society. If debt were purely opt in and people could simply not get into it while still having a first world life then I wouldn’t disagree with you at all. But as it stands debt is a requirement that permanently endentures far too many of our citizens.
coldtea 8y ago
>Using debt for homes, cars, education, and investments are generally assumed to be able to out grow the costs of that borrowing. For example, ideally a better education now means you can probably make more money over time, offsetting those costs and overall ending up much better than without borrowing. Its not stealing, to phrase like that is wrong. All of the above things have stopped worked for the majority of middle class and most working class people for the past 30+ years in the US (and lots of EU). "a better education now" doesn't "means you can probably make more money over time", but leaves you straddled with a large debt, as just another person with a degree in a huge pool of people who might not even make as much as their parents did. And the huge debt crisis shows that people and countries alike increasingly can't "out grow the costs of that borrowing". https://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickwwatson/2018/03/08/the-middle-class-might-nearly-disappear-in-the-next-decade/#2d5d1012251e https://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickwwatson/2018/03/08/the-m... https://www.brookings.edu/blog/social-mobility-memos/2018/06/05/seven-reasons-to-worry-about-the-american-middle-class/ https://www.brookings.edu/blog/social-mobility-memos/2018/06... http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/08/07/for-most-us-workers-real-wages-have-barely-budged-for-decades/ http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/08/07/for-most-us-... https://www.epi.org/publication/charting-wage-stagnation/ https://www.epi.org/publication/charting-wage-stagnation/

thatoneuser 8y ago

Personally I think we view education entirely too much as an individual responsibility. The worker isn’t the only one who benefits from the education. Companies, investors and society at large does too. So to push that cost entirely onto the individual and force a possible lifetime of debt is unreasonable. And that’s only possible because of debt. Housing and cars - I’d agree. But for me the problem with debt is it seems like a ploy to squeeze more and more out of people who don’t realize the deal, or who because of encroaching levels of debt don’t have a choice in society. If debt were purely opt in and people could simply not get into it while still having a first world life then I wouldn’t disagree with you at all. But as it stands debt is a requirement that permanently endentures far too many of our citizens.

coldtea 8y ago

>Using debt for homes, cars, education, and investments are generally assumed to be able to out grow the costs of that borrowing. For example, ideally a better education now means you can probably make more money over time, offsetting those costs and overall ending up much better than without borrowing. Its not stealing, to phrase like that is wrong. All of the above things have stopped worked for the majority of middle class and most working class people for the past 30+ years in the US (and lots of EU). "a better education now" doesn't "means you can probably make more money over time", but leaves you straddled with a large debt, as just another person with a degree in a huge pool of people who might not even make as much as their parents did. And the huge debt crisis shows that people and countries alike increasingly can't "out grow the costs of that borrowing". https://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickwwatson/2018/03/08/the-middle-class-might-nearly-disappear-in-the-next-decade/#2d5d1012251e https://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickwwatson/2018/03/08/the-m... https://www.brookings.edu/blog/social-mobility-memos/2018/06/05/seven-reasons-to-worry-about-the-american-middle-class/ https://www.brookings.edu/blog/social-mobility-memos/2018/06... http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/08/07/for-most-us-workers-real-wages-have-barely-budged-for-decades/ http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/08/07/for-most-us-... https://www.epi.org/publication/charting-wage-stagnation/ https://www.epi.org/publication/charting-wage-stagnation/