HUFFINGTON POST - Occupy Wall Street movement supporters were outraged by the bank
bailout. Now they want to start a bailout that people can actually get
behind.
Dubbed the Rolling Jubilee,
Occupiers have created a program to buy distressed consumer debt and
then erase it. That will "liberate debtors at random through a campaign
of mutual support, good will, and collective refusal," the Jubilee's
website said.
To get started, the movement is on a fundraising mission, with a goal
of $50,000. That's enough to purchase about $1 million in distressed
consumer debt, the group said. The group is hosting a live music variety
benefit show in New York City on Thursday, and will use social media to
gather donations.
Can it really work? So far there doesn't seem to be much standing in
the way, except the generosity of donors who will back the idea.
"I don't see a legal problem with somebody buying debt and canceling
it. If it's out there, it can be purchased," said Alan White, a law
professor with expertise in consumer bankruptcy at City University of
New York law school. "I do think it's a completely original idea."
According to a Tumblr post from one of the organizers, the group has already done a test, buying $14,000 worth of bad debt for $500 and successfully discharging it.
But before you get too excited about a life without $80,000 in loans
you can't repay, the movement is quick to caution that it has no way of
buying a specific person's debt.
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