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Brooklyn Red Leg

Occupy Wall Street campaigners buy-up debt to abolish it

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The Rolling Jubilee project is seeking donations to help it buy-up distressed debts, including student loans and outstanding medical bills, and then wipe the slate clean by writing them off.

Individuals or companies can buy distressed debt from lenders at knock-down prices if it the borrower is in default or behind with payments and are then free to do with it as they see fit, including cancelling it free of charge.


As a test run the group spent $500 on distressed debt, buying $14,000 worth of outstanding loans and pardoning the debtors. They are now looking to expand their experiment nationwide and are asking people to donate money to the cause.



David Rees, one of the organisers behind the project, writes on his blog: "This is a simple, powerful way to help folks in need - to free them from heavy debt loads so they can focus on being productive, happy and healthy.


"Now, after many consultations with attorneys, the IRS, and our moles in the debt-brokerage world, we are ready to take the Rolling Jubilee program live and nationwide, buying debt in communities that have been struggling during the recession."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/n...bolish-it.html



I wanted to expand on my thread to a full blog. I think this is an excellent idea. We always talk about Mutual Aid and how government "charity" is anything BUT charity. This is essentially what the Icelandic government did to save its economy, by forgiving these debts. The its an 'end-run' around the Banksters is just that much sweeter as its beating at their own game. The system is frozen now as it is as banks don't want to lend to citizens because its easier to loan to other banks (its safer).

Clearing out the market is EXACTLY what needs to happen! This would help people in distress (which is never a bad thing). More specifically, it would help people to start saving again, which is what we NEED! The markets have to be flushed of this toxic debt.

More important, in a way, than just helping people out (which would be AWESOME PRESS for us), it would be a way to reach out to the Occupy kids. We want them to come to our way of thinking and the only way to do that is to put our money where our mouth is vis-a-vis mutual aid. The only way we're going to get ahead with our society is to do what Dr. Paul says: lead by example. We could set up a parallel idea and do that, I suppose. However, I highly doubt the media would give us near the attention they're going to lavish on the Occupy kids. We DO MONEYBOMBS! Lets show them how it works! This is what we do!

Let's reach out to them and see what we can accomplish. If they rebuff us, then we can at least say we tried.

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