Bankruptcy is your superpower.

Every September 20th on National Bankruptcy Day I like to remind people about their bankruptcy superpower, in a whimsical way.

People who file Chapter 7 Bankruptcy get a fresh start that lets them make financial decisions faster than a speeding bullet.

Having money at the end of the day makes your wallet more powerful than a locomotive.

Bankruptcy allows you to discharge tall debts in a single case.

Bankruptcy gives you powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal man.

You can change the course of mighty foreclosures and repossessions; and

you can tear up garnishments with your bare hands.

Bankruptcy lets you wipe out unsecured debt, such as credit cards, medical bills, and personal loans.  It stops most lawsuits.  It lets you walk away from that house mortgage or car lien that you no longer want. It even wipes out certain taxes.

How special are you? Well, look at this.

• Not everyone can file Chapter 7 Bankruptcy.
• Not a railroad, or an insurance company
• Not a bank or credit union.
• Not even a city, town or village, or state. But yes, You Can!

Bankruptcy is a power that many do not want you to use, but should you?  Absolutely.  One need only look to the bible and constitution for inspiration.

The Book of Deuteronomy 15:1-2 mentions forgiveness of debt every seven years and the origin of the word bankruptcy comes from the Latin phrase, bankus ruptus, for broken table. Italians had a tradition of breaking the workbench or table of a banker or tradesman who could not pay his debts to prevent him from causing financial harm to others. Broken table also illustrates the narrative of Jesus casting bankers out of the temple that appears in all four canonical gospels of the New Testament. The Gospel of John version tells us Jesus used a whip, “And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables.” John 2: 13-16.  [Image by Ippolito Scarsellino.]

Bankruptcy is one of the few laws specifically mentioned in the Constitution of the United States of America, appearing at Article I, Section 8, granting Congress the exclusive power to make uniform bankruptcy laws; consequently, the bankruptcy court system fights a never-ending battle for truth justice and the American way.     

On this national day in honor of bankruptcy, collect your thoughts, reflect on your finances, ask yourself do you owe more money today than you did yesterday, and take time to understand how bankruptcy can improve your life.  Ask, learn, live.

Use your super power wisely.

[Image sourced to Bill Nye’s Comic History of England: Illustrated by William Goodes and A. M. Richards]