Come across this article today and, either is a response to an economic crisis that feels it will never end, look’s like a joke to the eyes of mankind.
You probably think UK is a great government to enable such manoeuvre. I wonder how this is affecting gov books? Does erasing citizen debt help gov look’s better on an international scale? Why UK would enable such a thing?
Yes8.3%
No50.0%
In debt but not in UK25.0%
What’s debt?16.7%
12 votes \ poll ended
this territory is moderated
152 sats \ 3 replies \ @freetx 9 Apr
I'm not in this UK and have no debt.
One of the decisions I made 25 years ago was to get rid of all debt. Honestly, it wasn't a totally smart financial decision as I could've probably earned more in the market than I saved in interest payments....however thats not the full story.
It took me about 10 years, but I successfully paid off my house and cars and thus have had 0 debt for the last 15 or so years. Monthly, I only need electricity, insurance, and food expenses. Moreover, living with zero debt enables you to say the most powerful word in the human language: No.
A man that is in debt can't really say No, as he has debt payments to satisfy. He certainly can't do something rash like quit his job or refuse to come in on Saturday.
Although being debt-free was questionable from a strict financial analysis, it enabled me to make much better financial choices for myself / family. I've been able to take on low time requirement work that only pays $3500 / month....but for me its a fine trade off.....2 or 3 hours of daily work...in exchange for the free time. This has now extended into me working several of these "consulting style" gigs, each bringing in a few grand per month but all on my schedule.
But the real upside is this then enabled me to focus more on things like Bitcoin and obviously actually being there for family. Go ask a 70 yr old with 50M how much he would spend to be able to do his life over again but this time actually be there with his family? As the saying goes, no man on his death bed ever says I wish I could've spent just one more day at the office....
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Impressive for having zero mortgage
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I lucked out in that I had sold another property that had considerable equity in it....I was able to sell that and use as a sizeable downpayment. So I was basically starting with only a 50% mortgage.
But yes, for that 10 years or so I paid like triple monthly mortgage payments, using all spare cash to drive down the principle as fast as possible. This is why I say it would've probably been "smarter" to invest that instead paying down a cheap mortgage, but mentally it was important for me to be debt-free.
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10 sats \ 0 replies \ @mo OP 9 Apr
I'm glad you were able to get out of the trap! Well done and thanks for sharing your story
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I'm in the UK and have made sure not to get wrapped up in significant debt. Credit cards are paid in full every month.
Only significant debt is my car loan, but I'm still positive-net-worth thanks to Bitcoin. I'm ignoring my student loan due to the way they work here, I don't have to pay it all back.
Thing is, I know I'm in a much better place than some of my peers who are bad with money, but it does sting a bit when I see them living a better lifestyle despite having less money. I know it'll pay off in the end though, and the other half is completely on-board with how I manage our finances.
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I knew student loans are a thing in the US, I was not aware there's the same structure in the UK!
How the student loan work then there? can people just leave the debt there as it is forever? I'm ignorant on this, so I'd like to know more.
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The important differences are that a) Student loan payments are only deducted after a certain salary threshold and b) The debt is written off after period of ~20-30 years (depending on when the loan was issued).
So, UK student loans behave much differently to conventional loans. They operate more like a "graduate tax". The terms of the loan mean that there's little incentive for paying them back early, and the vast majority of holders will not be paying the full amount back before they are written off completely. As of now, graduates in the UK owe around £220B of student debt.
While the US system is predatory, I believe it to be at least fairer than the UK's system where the general public will be left to pick up the tab.
You probably think UK is a great government to enable such manoeuvre.
No. Similar to the Bidenomic manoeuvre of student debt 'forgiveness' this scheme (scam) is just a tactic with the direct intended consequences of boosting voter appeal.
Why UK would enable such a thing?
To my mind, fudging numbers directing attention to how a government has helped in some way and using those stats in campaigns to appeal directly to the large number of people that have ended up in this bad financial situation, this makes any continuation of the same government seem more palletable to that group which would have been the most critical.
I wonder how this is affecting gov books?
I'd love to know. From a very simple 2+2 math angle, it would be easy to calculate that those debts being frozen, extinguished or written off are not finding a new home, in the way that they would be if debts were actually repayed. That money would find its way into some industry, be possibly reinvested or saved. When stuff is bought on credit and debts are written off, there is no other outcome other than more money chasing fewer goods. We know what happens when there is more money in circulation chasing fewer goods.
Does erasing citizen debt help gov look’s better on an international scale?
I don't think there's any way that such a claim can be made one way of the other. I guess that once upon a time there might have been some kind of posturing, but as everyone can see, there's just so much internal chicanery that it makes little sense to compare. My 2 pennies.
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0 sats \ 1 reply \ @mo OP 9 Apr
thanks for your insights. Much appreciated
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Enjoy the thought process but not sure of the gov intent. Thanks for posting it.
Perhaps extinguishing debts is intentional monetary policy to stimulate inflation. Or perhaps it's to throw more fuel on the fire of socializing losses and rewarding irresponsible borrowers. In either way, it doesn't seem helpful to me.
Actually, the bideneconomics isnt working all that great. Also, the student debt relief never happened, he used that to gain votes.
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11 sats \ 1 reply \ @xz 9 Apr
Just say no to debt.
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💪
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10 sats \ 1 reply \ @Ghoost 9 Apr
I fear that a policy choice like this will only help UK citizens in the short term and will cause major problems in the future, as it is not a healthy way to run a country's economy...
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that's what I thought! Can debt magically disappear? don't think so. I agree, it could have major consequences!
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0 sats \ 1 reply \ @jowo 10 Apr
buying a home in the UK without taking on significant debt is pretty much impossible for the average person. because houses are so expensive, and for general quality of of life and cost of living reasons, i left the UK about 3 years ago. I now already own a home out right, paid for in cash and renovated it myself. current monthly expenses are about €100 for all bills, taxes, insurance etc. in the UK this stuff would be 10x
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You did the right thing, voting with your feet. Not everyone has the courage to do it. Hat off!
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I had never taken debt from any of institutions. Whatever I have taken has always come via Bitcoin. And you may be surprised to know if I tell you, that my debt against Bitcoin has even given me profits.
These governments, be it uk or any other, can do anything. They can print excessively and they sometimes can demonetize the currency. All the do is what they want. Nocaring for taxpayers.
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my debt against Bitcoin has even given me profits.
What do you mean? fiat profit?
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No, it's like I use it as collateral when I need to buy some essentials then I repay them with the same amount of Sats, no interest so that's the profit.
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0 sats \ 1 reply \ @mo OP 9 Apr
Ah ok make sense. Do you use a specific platform or the transaction done P2P?
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