Do you think that the general public considers us as "shysters"?

[JackBondLove]

I was reading the comments for a BusinessWeek article about folks who have had debts discharged in BK being hounded by collection agencies. Amazingly, there are a bunch of reponses that basically say that we are the shysters here!

http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/oct2007/db20071031_039775.htm

Here are some of the comments (I gave up after page 5!)

Tim

Dec 3, 2007 10:41 PM GMT

Guy declares bankruptcy one year and tries to buy a $275,000 house the next? He needs to pay Capital One. This is ridiculous. If I had a billion dollars I would donate 100 million to Capital One to appeal stupid cases like this. Take responsibility for your stupid actions!


Gerry

Nov 26, 2007 3:01 PM GMT

Give me a break!!!People ring up their credit cards to "keep up with the Jones," lease cars that they can't afford, and are fooled into buying houses that once again they can't afford. Then blame it on society's advertising that coerced them into purchasing all of this. Wake up folks, you and I (the responsible ones) end up paying for their ignorance! Stop bankruptcy and bring back "debtors prison."


Marty

Nov 12, 2007 7:52 PM GMT

There is no doubt that the general public abuses the bankrupcy laws.I sold a small investment property and the buyer went BK after the closing. The buyer included his fiance's engagment ring in the BK. How would you like to be engaged to that guy?The buyer still owed me several thousand dollars after the closing which was included in the BK.I went to the BK hearing and told the Trustee that the home was worth $25,000 more than the price that was listed in the BK papers.You can guess what happened.Also, people should contact the credit reporting services and supply them with their BK papers. Then contact a class action attorney and go after the banks, their debt purchasers and file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission.Finally, visit the web site of WWW.BUDHIBBS.COMThis is the greatest web site in America dealing with debt collections agencies, arbitration scammers etc.Good health,Marty


miked

Nov 12, 2007 1:48 PM GMT

Am I the only person that feels this reporter misses the point when it comes to people gaming the system? In my mind someone who files for bankruptcy one year has no business looking for financing on a new home the next. Who is the victim here? it is the poor people who got robbed of their money by this charlatan who is now looking for a loan yet again.


Mike

Nov 12, 2007 1:38 PM GMT

How honorable. In other countries "pulling oneself out" means taking on three jobs and living out of the car for two years while you paid off the debts. In other countries you also have debtors prison. Where you repay society by being holed up and paving roads or doing landscaping. We should institute a version of that here and do away with illegal immigration at the same time.


Clemens

Nov 9, 2007 10:53 AM GMT

Poor people who overspend what they don't have and will not be able to pay back, forcing their apparent affluence to be paid by other (us)!Nice 'justice' that supports such an unjust behaviour and gives those poor people the right to go on cheating!How malicious these companies that lend us money (their clients') when we need it but want it back someday!


Matt

Nov 9, 2007 3:24 AM GMT

The first example in this article is disturbing. Van Rathavongsa files Bankrupty in 2002 escaping a "mountain of bills" and then has the finances to apply for a "274,650 mortgage" a year later? And, he apparently had the finances to pay the $9,523 owed from the year before. I can't fault the credit card company from wanting their money from people who play these games.


Mosh

Nov 8, 2007 4:58 AM GMT

Right guys - sort of. The abuse of credit is a 2 way street. Consumers need to be held responsible for the debts they rack up too. I mean seriously - this 'Von Rathavonsangan' character was able to wipe out all the debt he racked up via bankruptcy in 2002 and then turn around a year later and get approved for a 275K mortgage? Someone who proves to a court that they have no ability to repay debt should not be legally allowed to have debt in the first place. Because in the end - those of us who play by the rules end up paying for them.Susan - Try Prosper.com.


Paul

Nov 6, 2007 10:20 PM GMT

I have little sympathy for debtors that file bankruptcy, while they may not have a legal responibility for discharged debts they do have a moral responsibility to pay debts that they have incurred. Small business owners such as myself lose because of people that purchase our products and then declare bankruptcy.


Jack Heismann

Nov 6, 2007 8:05 PM GMT

Although the actions of Capital One may have been improper, I have to question the morality of those who borrow money, spend it, have the debt "erased", then feel no obligation to return anything to the lender no matter how wealthy they become. -Here, Business Week's "prisoner of debt" is buying a home worth close to $300,000 if not much more, has enough income to cover a $275,000 mortgage, and even had that extra $9500 when squeezed for the cash. -Would any of us accept that level of greed or indifference if the lender was a relative, friend or neighbor? Would any of us simply sit back while the person we lent to walked away with it all, then bought a brand new home? This is why we now have bankruptcy reform. -I can't say that Capital One acted ethically, but greed is always a two way street. I can tell you that if I had made that loan from my savings account, I'd be pounding on that brand new front door demanding my cash back no matter what the bankruptcy court said.

[IamOld]

Remember that the banksters do have people they pay to do this, first of all, to send these "grass-roots" letters.

Second, we have become a very cruel country with a significant lack of empathy, and even more, fundamental understanding of the real world. A lot of these folks "hate" because they cannot stand someone bettering themselves, and indeed, playing by the rules that are here - that is BK. They are also self-deluded - they make common cause with the banksters and the billionaires as if they were one of THEM and not one of US. Because this way, they can feel superior to US if they think they're part of THEM. Certain political party also pushes this philosophy of "personal responsibility" for everyone - except corporations and banks.

[Foofy610]

If the general public considers us shysters... what do they think about Chase sending me a letter saying my interest rate was being raised from 7.99% to 17.99%... for no apparent reason. Never late, never missed. Their only excuse was that they have the right to raise rates at the company's discretion.

Now... tell me who the shysters are!!!!!

(rant over)

[IamOld]

foofy, because some folks need this to feel superior - until, God forbid, something happens to them....then it's a very very very rude awakening.

[Dmax]

It wouldn't surprise me if some of those posters (who posted back in 2007) saw things quite differently just a couple of years later.

[IamOld]

Exactly!

[pinkpeanut01]

I just read that article about two days ago, and I thought the same thing about the comments. I don't get how anybody, unless they're on the payroll, can defend what the banks get away with while calling us the bad guys. I know I'm not innocent in all this and I made mistakes, but come on. Let them switch spots with me and see what kind of shyster I am. So easy to judge from the greener side of the fence.

[merime]

i agree! everyone judges, until they walk a mile in your shoes. About a month ago I posted about this ady in her 70s , who when she foresaw her CC bills getting out of control took all her money out of the bank. She then qualified 2 yrs later for foodstamps and reduced healh care. so many people wrote that she was wrong to do that, that it would haunt her and that essentially she was evil. How different was she from anyone who bails of a sinking ship. Everyone makes mistakes, its how we repair what we do that makes us unique. That lady is no different from anyone who has ever posted on this forum hoping to salvage what they have left. File or not ,we deserve to live a life.

[sunshinepa]

Well gee this week I have become the following based on this and another post.....LOL - A shyster with no honor!!!! Based on my good news today, they can call me whatever they want, I am one happy camper!

Another thing, nobody ever calls Trump or the other rich folks who file BK anything or even blinks an eye when they file. In fact, I'd bet some of those posters supported Trumps show and helped him make even more money!!!!!

[NewPage]

Honestly I don't care what anyone thinks. They don't know the circumstances.

[Drazil65]

My thoughts exactly on the timeframe of these comments, 2007. I wonder how these same people would comment today since the "big" banks themselves found out what it was like to not have the funds to pay their bills on time. Only difference is they threaten the government with total economic ruin if they did not give them the money to climb out of their hole and keep functioning, I think there is a word for that somewhere???

Seriously, I look at the amount of money I originally borrowed, how much plus interest I have paid back over the years and know in my heart that I have paid them back twice over. As we have never been late or over the limit we do not have fees added in so i can tell you they have taken advantage of my husband and I in a big way with their creative accounting practices and bogus fees with little or no regulation. I would love to take a poll of the then commenters to see how many of them have filed since then.

[frogger]

If the government had given me millions of dollars in a bailout, I would not have had to file bk. BK was, is, and always will be nothing more than a business decision.

To those that don't like it, they can pound sand....

[disconapper]

LOL...I agree with Frogger and everyone else. Sounds like the people leaving the negative remarks in the article need a big ol' heaping serving of humble pie....I'd hate for their words to come back and haunt them...then they'd have to eat their words and as Frogger so eloquently put it...pound sand. HA

It can happen to anyone at anytime....do people abuse the system...I'm sure of it....but the laws are in place for a reason...to provide a fresh start to those people that need.

If people disagree with a person's personal choice to file, or my personal choice to file...well Frankly Scarlett, I don't give a......

[IamOld]

If the government had given me millions of dollars in a bailout, I would not have had to file bk. BK was, is, and always will be nothing more than a business decision.

To those that don't like it, they can pound sand....

Well said as always!!!

[AngelinaCatHub]

The simple answer is that whatever other people think should not be an issue of shame. BK is a business decision, pure and simple. I am in my mid sixties, once worth ten mil, and never in my life expected to bk. Conditions beyond our control forced us. I would NEVER judge another as BK is becoming the best financial answer for for many people who once had reliable jobs.

This depression we are in and currently going deeper is man made. Let me rephrase this, started by Bush, and enhanced by 'Bammy and this current government. The devaluation of our currency is a cheap way to pay our debts back at the common people's expense. A poor person subservient to the Government for health care, income (SS) and food (food stamps) is a controllable person. A person who can exist without governmental help is a danger to this type of society being formed right before our eyes. This is not new. Figure the 20's and 30's Weirmar Republic Germany, and you can see in history what we are repeating. READ PEOPLE, go to Youtube and Draw up old Hitler speeches (with sub titles) and hear what our current "Leader" has said. You will be amazed at what you will see if ONLY you will look.

BK is becoming a way of life, and acceptance by those who are not in bk but see their possibility of joining the crowd is possible, will be changing their attitude of what bk is. 'Hub