Baltimore-based ethicist and philosophy professor Nina Guise-Gerrity ponders local goings-on and poses the questions that hit to the core and clarify--or muddy--the way of the world as seen from your backyard.
As just reported, last month saw 73,000 homes reclaimed by banks due to lapsed mortgages. If this were a singular event, then it would be a phenomenon. It is not. So, who will come to the rescue? According to the federal government, tax payers will. By securing loans through guaranteed tax revenues, the government is willing to back mortgage companies and banks that lend money to homeowners who cannot pay because of the recessive economy. If the extended loan cannot be repaid, the government would ensure mortgage companies and banks repayment with monies received from additionally taxing the public. On our behalf, the government has determined that the greater good of society is served when we help one another during a crisis. One must ask if the government has the right to force the general populous to bail out citizens who are unable to repay loans that either tough economic conditions or poor personal monetary judgment have left in a bind.