Gunnar Nelson, Chapter 7, Question #6

Before reading this chapter, I never defined the word "borrowing" as a virtue. However, even after the first few pages of this chapter, I can see how it can be a useful resource. A passage that struck me as interesting and astounding is about Raising Capital. As a nation, America has been shaped on the idea of using money that is not ours to use, and sometimes money that we do not have. "... Visa and MasteCard indulge our eagerness to consume today what we cannot afford until next year (if then)..." After reading this I could not possibly see how borrowing money could be a good economic choice. However Wheelan goes on to explain in that same paragraph that borrowing makes all sorts of possible investments. Now this has really peaked my interest...how can he say in the same paragraph that borrowing money can either cause our ship to sink, or float.

"Modern economies cannot survive without credit." Wheelan goes on to a passage that I find to be his best support. He describes a woman, Esther Gelabuzi who is a widowed mid wife in Uganda with six children. Esther used a tiny loan (by Western Standards) to set up a clinic. And since the creation of the clinic, she has delivered fourteen hundred babies. This example proves to me that borrowing and using the borrowed money for legitament purposes can help to strengthen an economy.