Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Forgive You Not!

A friend of mine recently bragged on Facebook that he signed a petition floating around the social media world.

What he gleefully signed was The Forgive Student Loan Debt petition at SignOn.org, which is being presented as a immediate stimulus to the economy, allowing those forgiven to increase consumer spending to jolt the economy. They also insist this will lift all boats and is a much better alternative to tax cuts for corporations, millionaires and billionaires.

Yep, class warfare at its finest, sweeping up useful idiots across the fruited plain.

As an attorney and a fellow graduate of my alma mater, The Florida State University, I certainly expected more from my friend intellectually. But then again, he is a proud progressive, the political element that aims to usher in socialism, and this line of thinking falls right under the umbrella. It also lines up against the Founding Fathers, free market capitalism, commerce and the rule of law.

Unfortunately, efforts in this regard will actually have a negative long term effect on the economy, and the evidence can be traced to contract law, which if broken, causes catastrophic damage to economic confidence. The Obama administration, in one of their first moves, broke the rule of law by altering the contractual obligations of the bond holders of the car companies in favor of union thugocracy. In redirecting this order, the Obama administration broke the rule of law and immediately destroyed investor confidence. By design.

For my attorney friend, lets review some things. A company (the University or college) produces a product (the education) at an expense (instructor salary, building costs, utility cost, property costs, etc.) in an effort to attract (seller) consumption by a buyer (student) at a mutually agreed upon price (compensation), which is an implied contractual agreement. Keep in mind the buyer was not forced to purchase this product; they made the choice to do so.

So, now all those former students, who consumed the product, now seek to not pay for it, thinking everything just resets and all will be well, seemingly unaware of the damage to the market impacting their consumer choices moving forward.

Well, there is no free lunch.

When buyers don't pay sellers, the seller eats the costs. Many make effort to attempt to recapture the cost through avenues such as raising prices or limiting or increasing the costs of credit for future consumers. With respect to student loans, state university systems attempt to pass the costs along to the taxpayers, which one might conclude includes the original purchaser. If they are unable to do so, this could cause a restriction on the availability of classes or the existence of courses available. And God forbid at FSU we can't pay Jimbo Fisher's contract!

Individually for the purchaser, or student, personal accountability seems absent, as they are choosing to not live up to their personally pledged obligations, damaging their own credit and making their word meaningless.

Might they consider those of us who have satisfied our student loan obligations? Kept our word?

It is now time for deadbeats and freeloaders to step to the plate and satisfy their obligations, not throw it back on the seller or the taxpayer. Bad things happen to good people, and if it gets to a point of no recovery, bankruptcy is a legal option these folks should pursue.

Unfortunately, the Obama administration is encouraging default for individual Americans. But why would the administration make default the path of least resistance? Cloward and Piven. Under extreme economic duress, folks seeking help find the easiest answer to be the government. This crashes the system and enables the government, never letting a good crisis go to waste, to increase their power over the people, which decreases our liberty and freedom.

I recognize how difficult the economy is, but I urge all Americans to make every effort to meet their responsibilities and obligations, keep a commitment to the rule of law our economic system is based on and be wary of those bearing to good to be true answers and gifts from the same people who are central in creating the increasingly challenging economic landscape.

There is no free lunch. Freedom is not free.

Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same. --Ronald Reagan

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