Credit Crunch on Middle American Dreams

Ah, if only the American Dream purchased on easy credit were so simple to leave behind.

With the previous tightening of the bankruptcy laws (aimed to protect big banks and their questionable lending practices) many American’s won’t find it so easy to excuse themselves of debt this time around.

The cycle of easy credit with an easy escape (either by refinancing an appreciated property or Chapter 7 bankruptcy that previously allowed many to walk away from unsecured debt for only a few hundred bucks) is no longer an option. It’s also a situation the economy hasn’t faced before and any recession caused by the current housing market slowdown, could be prolonged by the difficulty the middle class will have getting back on stable financial feet.

Of course, in a country where welfare is viewed negatively by capital idealists, there’s pretty much a guarantee that any trouble by the big corporations will find some sort of corporate welfare so they survive.

Free Market Emergency? Yes, I’d Like to Compare Prices…

In this Friday’s Drawing for a Reader, I was prompted to tackle the issue of health care. I’m surprised I’d not tried health care, considering it’s such a big issue. I guess that’s why I invite topic suggestions, so I don’t get into any set grove.

So here you have it.

Free market health care, as explained in an article by Jay Bookman (August 23, 2007), would encourage health care consumers (meaning you) to be more proactive in seeking the best possible price for your health care solutions. Some advocates of Free Market Theory have used laser eye surgery as an excellent example of how non-covered medical expenses within the free market economy, become cheaper over time.

Yes, this may sound rosy when you no longer need your tinted glasses. But come on. Do we really think our health care costs keep going up because of minor cosmetic surgeries? Let’s try, $2000 for a 10 minute emergency room visit for starters. And it only goes up from there.