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  3. Bankruptcy rates in the U.S. have been growing for more than two decades despite generally rising levels of personal income. The

Bankruptcy rates in the U.S. have been growing for more than two decades despite generally rising levels of personal income. The

admin2022-08-04  61
问题     Bankruptcy rates in the U.S. have been growing for more than two decades despite generally rising levels of personal income. The most prominent explanation puts the blame directly on credit cards, which became vastly more popular in the past 30 years. University of Pennsylvania law professor David A. Skeel notes that a 1978 Supreme Court decision allowed credit-card companies to charge the interest rate allowed in their state of incorporation. As a result, many incorporated in the high-rate states of Delaware and South Dakota. Being able to charge high rates throughout the country, they could afford to issue cards to those with limited ability to repay. Many high-risk cardholders, overburdened with debt, filed for bankruptcy.
    Skeel also notes that the impersonality of credit-card borrowing may have helped weaken the moral imperative to repay debts: in the 1960s a prospective borrower met face-to-face with a bank lending officer, but today the borrower gets credit by responding to a junk-mail offer.
    Other developments also fueled the rise in bankruptcy, including medical bills. A Harvard University study found that about a quarter of filers cited illness or injury as the specific reason for their troubles. Loss of jobs probably also drove some credit-card holders into bankruptcy. Other possible contributors include the growth of the gambling industry in recent years and the Supreme Court’s 1977 decision to allow lawyers to advertise directly to the general public.
    Changes in bankruptcy law apparently have had little effect on filings. The Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1978 was designed to make it easier for consumers to pay off debts and start anew. As under previous acts, penniless debtors could file for complete discharge of debts under Chapter 7, and debtors with substantial assets could arrange for partial repayment under Chapter 13. Most filers opted for the more generous provisions of Chapter 7. During the six years following implementation of the act, filings rose substantially. The act was amended in 1984 to curb opportunistic petitions. However, filings went in the opposite direction than expected. Evidently, easy credit and other debt-creating forces have been more powerful.
    The latest legal effort is the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, which went into effect in October. The new act lays down far more strict standards for debtors, including a test to qualify for Chapter 7 relief. Despite the new restrictions, bankruptcy experts tend to be skeptical or noncommittal about the effectiveness in reducing filings.
Which of the following is true about the other factors fueling the bankruptcy rise?
选项 A、Lack of medical insurance has brought about social troubles
B、Unemployment has weakened cardholders’ ability to repay debts
C、The growth of gambling industry has inhibited money wasting
D、Government authorities have decided to legalize bankruptcy
答案B
解析 根据fueling the rise可定位到第三段。该段第三句谈到失业(Loss of jobs)也可能导致持卡人破产。B项中的Unemployment对应文中的Loss of jobs，而weakened…ability to repay debts则对应文中的drove…into bankruptcy，因此，B项为正确答案。第三段开头两句提到医疗费用会加速破产率的上升，并没有提到具体的医疗保险，故A项“缺乏医疗保险导致了社会问题”错误。由该段最后一句可知，博彩业是可能促使破产的因素之一，但C项“博彩业的发展防止了金钱挥霍”与文意不符，博彩业可能会使赌徒负债累累。D项“政府决定使破产合法化”并非导致破产率上升的因素，且文中提到的只是法院对破产法的修改。
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