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Lumifer comments on Open Thread June 6 - June 12, 2016 - Less Wrong Discussion

4 Post author: Elo 06 June 2016 04:21AM

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Comment author: Lumifer 13 June 2016 02:42:48PM 0 points [-]

People on welfare can already borrow money on credit cards and so on.

Your picture of people on welfare seems a bit rosy. You think everyone has credit cards?

If they get into default the only legally enforceable repayment arrangements are ones where they are not forced below subsistence levels.

Correct. However that generally involves declaring personal bankruptcy, at which point you're locked out of all credit (including credit cards) for a few years.

It is, of course, possible to make GBI, to use a legal term, "non-garnishable" meaning it cannot be collected to satisfy a judgement against a person. But that would make it impossible to use it as collateral for a loan to buy equipment, for example. The child support payments also could become an issue.

Comment author: TheAncientGeek 22 June 2016 04:17:13PM *  0 points [-]

Your picture of people on welfare seems a bit rosy

Does it? I didn't say it was a good thing.

You think everyone has credit cards?

I don't need the premise that everyone has credit cards to support the conclusion that some people on welfare do. I hear news stories about it.

It is, of course, possible to make GBI, to use a legal term, "non-garnishable" meaning it cannot be collected to satisfy a judgement against a person. But that would make it impossible to use it as collateral for a loan to buy equipment, for example.

But you could set a non-garnishable component that is less than the whole GBI. I am still not seeing a novel problem.

Comment author: Lumifer 22 June 2016 06:39:46PM 0 points [-]

I'm not saying there is a novel problem. I'm saying there are old problems that GBI does not magically solve, mostly revolving around the very old observation that a fool and his money are soon parted.

Comment author: TheAncientGeek 24 June 2016 12:14:54AM *  0 points [-]

Did anyone say it solved those problems?

Penicillin doesn't cure the common cold either.