I have a sharp-tongued friend who once worked at a Collection Agency straight out of college, a job that suited her well. I remember her telling us of her phone calls; she’d go after these people without mercy: “You’d better get your ass off that couch because we’re coming for it!” and “Take the Christmas gifts out of the trunk ‘cuz that car is ours now!“. Those were classics to our 20-year-old ears.
They don’t seem so funny anymore, maybe now that I’m just too keenly aware of how easy it is to slip under. I’m not talking about going spending crazy with a credit card; I’m talking about losing a job, getting behind on bills and then just slowly. sinking. under. I have a lot more empathy at 41 than I did at 22.
So lately, I’ve thought a lot about those phone calls, especially with all the crap that is going on in the financial world. Our debt is now up to 10 trillion dollars, and we owe huge sums of money (about 25% of the total) to foreign countries like China and Japan.
I will be the first to admit that I don’t know all that much about how this “debt ownership” works, but what if China decides they want that debt paid off now? We clearly aren’t in a position to pay anything off, so what then?
The other night I lay in bed and wondered what China might demand. Texas? California? New York? Or, maybe they’ll just take Microsoft and call it a day. I’ll even throw in McDonald’s and one almost-past President/VP team for good measure.
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What I don’t get is people who still act as if the US can just take their toys and go home, or better yet – blow up anyone who doesn’t agree with us. Isolationist idiots – they don’t realize how truly interconnected the world is now. Grrr. This election is making me testy.
“American, capitalist pigs. Give us all your dairy cows! And stop asking about the age of our gymnasts!”
…or maybe not.
I don’t understand it either. I’ve always wondered what they’d take if they decided to come for payment. maybe they could take Iraq? Just a thought.
I was downsized out of a part-time job which kept us barely treading water in the financial world. We were still borrowing form my in-laws. Then the crap hit the fan, and I needed a 7 hour back surgery that would keep me out of the work place for 6 months but still unable to receive ‘any’ type of government assistance.
We are borrowing half of our mortgage from my in-laws for the last 5-6 months, and take nearly everything my son brings in on a part time bag boys schedule.
How much worse off do we need to be before we are eligible for assistance.
But no, that want us to sell our car. Did I mention my son is autistic and still does not drive, and have any decent public transportation to speak, and I am not going to turn him over to walk to work, he is waaaay to gullible.
So the bill collectors are calling us in droves and there is not one darned thing I can do to get them their money. I want to give it to them, but I can’t.