Daniel Gross has a piece out on the rise of the cash economy, Cash Is King I found this section interesting, though not surprising:
...During the go-go years, it was common to hear theorists talk about the "discipline of debt." On paper, high debt loads force managers (and homeowners) to make tough, swift decisions to stay solvent. Default, and you lose the company (or the house). But in reality, rather than scrimp, overextended borrowers are more likely to walk away from mortgages, or push companies into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Americans are now discovering that cash exerts a superior discipline. The real discipline of cash may be that it causes executives, consumers, and investors to think twice—and to think about the long-term consequences—before spending. The need for instant gratification is part of what created the current mess.
There's theory, and then there's reality. I really don't know if cash is ...
