> You say this like it is an unequivocal good, but I don't think it necessarily is. The world functioned before it was common to have instance frictionless access to a no-collateral high-rate loan.
The world also functioned before we had fractional reserve banking, but somewhere along the way we realized it's better to have it than not. It doesn't have to be an unequivocal good for it to be preferable, on balance, to living without.
It's hard to do an apples to apples comparison, but there are countries where there aren't credit cards like in the US, and they are poorer for it. Giving that a proper examination would require a far larger comment box than is here.
You can choose to opt out of the system. It requires a lot of work (and poverty) but the underground economy doesn't run credit checks.
The world also functioned before we had fractional reserve banking, but somewhere along the way we realized it's better to have it than not. It doesn't have to be an unequivocal good for it to be preferable, on balance, to living without.
It's hard to do an apples to apples comparison, but there are countries where there aren't credit cards like in the US, and they are poorer for it. Giving that a proper examination would require a far larger comment box than is here.
You can choose to opt out of the system. It requires a lot of work (and poverty) but the underground economy doesn't run credit checks.