I'm of two minds about this. On one hand, yes, these companies have people going after money they don't have any legal obligation to. The companies definitely have some evil going. I have some sympathy for the employees, because times are tough and you take whatever job you can get, but not enough that I agree with the tone of the article.
On the other hand, I do think that people should be responsible for paying their debts, and to some degree, you have to be responsible for your family. Should you be legally responsible for dad's credit card? No, of course not, he (was) an adult and you couldn't control him. But on a moral level: How responsible was he for your quality of life? Would he have had those debts if he didn't pay for you to go to college? ("Where is your brother Abel?" "Am I my brother's keeper?")
Or another way, if the medical bills had piled up but dad had recovered, and then he needed help paying them, would you even hesitate? Why does it make a difference, then?
From a coldly logical perspective, no, you should never pay any debt you don't have to. From an emotional perspective, it just seems like the honorable thing to do.
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On the other hand, I do think that people should be responsible for paying their debts, and to some degree, you have to be responsible for your family. Should you be legally responsible for dad's credit card? No, of course not, he (was) an adult and you couldn't control him. But on a moral level: How responsible was he for your quality of life? Would he have had those debts if he didn't pay for you to go to college? ("Where is your brother Abel?" "Am I my brother's keeper?")
Or another way, if the medical bills had piled up but dad had recovered, and then he needed help paying them, would you even hesitate? Why does it make a difference, then?
From a coldly logical perspective, no, you should never pay any debt you don't have to. From an emotional perspective, it just seems like the honorable thing to do.
I'm not sure how clear I'm being, of course.