Historically European Jews were money lenders since Christians were forbidden to charge interest. This was one of the major forces behind the pogroms, since killing the debt holders saved you having to pay up.
On a country level scale this is significant. If you live in a dangerous area, you want the USA to have invested a lot of money in you which they will lose if you ever are conquered.
People claiming that debts are inherited by the estate: this only applies to formal, legible debts. If you lend money informally (possibly because there’s a criminal element involved), or the debt is an informal obligation to provide services/respect then once the debt holder dies it’s often gone.
Even for many types of legible debt, once the debt holder dies it’s very difficult for the estate to know the debt exists or it’s status. If old Joey Richbanks lends me 10 million dollars, witnessed and signed in a contract, who says his children are ever going to find the contract? And if they do, and I claim I already paid it, how certain are they I’m lying? And how likely are they to win the court case if so?
And if they do, and I claim I already paid it, how certain are they I’m lying? And how likely are they to win the court case if so?
When you pay it off, Joey should be sending you a document stating that the debt is paid, and you should also have a record of a bank transfer or other paper trail showing that the money got to Joey. If his children demand the money and you claim you already paid it, the court will ask for this paperwork and will have no trouble deciding that you’re lying if you can’t produce it.
Historically European Jews were money lenders since Christians were forbidden to charge interest. This was one of the major forces behind the pogroms, since killing the debt holders saved you having to pay up.
On a country level scale this is significant. If you live in a dangerous area, you want the USA to have invested a lot of money in you which they will lose if you ever are conquered.
People claiming that debts are inherited by the estate: this only applies to formal, legible debts. If you lend money informally (possibly because there’s a criminal element involved), or the debt is an informal obligation to provide services/respect then once the debt holder dies it’s often gone.
Even for many types of legible debt, once the debt holder dies it’s very difficult for the estate to know the debt exists or it’s status. If old Joey Richbanks lends me 10 million dollars, witnessed and signed in a contract, who says his children are ever going to find the contract? And if they do, and I claim I already paid it, how certain are they I’m lying? And how likely are they to win the court case if so?
When you pay it off, Joey should be sending you a document stating that the debt is paid, and you should also have a record of a bank transfer or other paper trail showing that the money got to Joey. If his children demand the money and you claim you already paid it, the court will ask for this paperwork and will have no trouble deciding that you’re lying if you can’t produce it.
The answer to “why can’t I just abuse the system?” is “they’re not idiots; they’ll have thought of it”.