The effects of the US credit system aren’t so far from that of China’s controversial system
In the United States, the credit bureaus don’t downgrade consumers for spending on things they deem silly or for being neglectful pet owners. But credit rankings in the US are set up in such a way that people with more resources get more financial breaks while people with fewer resources are routinely punished — often in ways that make little sense.
A person may end up with bad credit because he lost his job, but the fact that his credit suffered while unemployed could effectively prevent him from landing another job. According to the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, it is not illegal for employers to deny an applicant a job offer based on information in his credit report. This makes it that much harder for people with bad credit to get the gainful employment needed to repair their scores.
People with poor credit may also be turned down for housing, even if the reason for the would-be tenant’s troublesome credit history has nothing to do with her rental history. Someone who consistently paid rent on time but racked up credit card debt due to medical expenses could find her housing application denied or be asked to pay a higher deposit as punishment.
By some estimates, one in five Americans has unpaid medical debt, and more than half of blacks and Latinos have medical debt on their credit cards. This not only limits rental opportunities but opportunities to buy a home, as good credit is generally a requirement for a housing loan. And lenders, of course, have historically created barriers for people of color pursuing homeownership.
Transportation and credit aren’t just linked in China but in the US too. Americans with bad credit pay more for car insurance than their counterparts with good credit. Some banks have systematically given people of color subprime auto loans, even if their credit history didn’t justify that they pay more interest.
“Credit reports and scores are mirrors of our manifestly two-tiered financial system, and more broadly our system of racial wealth inequality and unequal opportunity,” Sarah Ludwig, founder and co-director of the New Economy Project wrote in a 2015 Guardian essay. “In our culture, indebtedness — and certainly failure to pay one’s debts — is deeply entwined with concepts of morality. The insidious notion that our credit history speaks to our reliability as human beings is largely taken for granted.”
The 2019 debut of the UltraFICO score, an alternative to the traditional FICO credit score, is being touted as a potential remedy for the inequities in the US credit system. Rather than focus on length of credit history, for example, it takes into consideration whether one saves regularly, maintains a $400 bank balance, avoids overdrafts, and pays bills on time.
But this alternative isn’t likely to benefit the low-income people who have to juggle bills to survive, perhaps paying the heating bill late one month and the car insurance late the next. For truly cash-poor families, regularly saving money or avoiding overdraft fees is a Herculean task. In fact, many poor people forgo bank accounts altogether because banking fees take such a toll on their finances. UltraFico might help people of average means with short credit histories, but it’s questionable if the score will change circumstances for the underprivileged.
Given how interlinked morality, debt, and credit are in the United States, some of the concerns about China’s new social credit score comes across as disingenuous. Although the system certainly raises alarms — Human Rights Watch is concerned about it, after all — the idea that the US credit system operates much more equitably is shortsighted.
Bhassler wrote:Xu didn't start any of this-- he was challenged by a famous "taiji master" and when he answered the challenge it all blew up.
What he has done was actually very common in my experience in China.
Historically it is also the case.
The difference he did it in a very public way, challenging the traditions
of long time established CMA gyms and teachers.
If you understand Chinese and watch a few minutes of his livestreams on Youtube... it's hard to feel much empathy towards him. He's just a narcissist.
The self-proclaimed master didn’t start Xu’s mouth to move
Taking on the Chinese government is another. If he keeps it up will credit score be Xu's biggest problem? I hope it doesn't get worse for him.
In the end aside from his personal misfortunes
I feel he will be regarded as a positive influence in the development of CMA
But the idea that he should or could be fined by the Chen's or should suffer social consequences for accepting challenge matches (or even instigating them!) is truly ridiculous. It doesn't matter if he is a narcissist or not IMO.
Bao wrote:I think it’s very hard to comprehend if you are not Chinese or at least have been living in China for a long time.
Bhassler wrote:Xu didn't start any of this-- he was challenged by a famous "taiji master" and when he answered the challenge it all blew up. Much like most opinions on the internet, the vast majority of what people are saying about the situation is based on personal bias and bad assumptions.
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