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CD ROM Paradise Collection 4 1995 Nov.iso
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1995-05-18
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FIXING FINANCIAL AFFLICTION
By Dr. John E. Russell
Failing finances are a common problem now-a-days. How
doesone extricate himself from a heavy debt load? There are ads
that offer to do that. . .for a price. It may be the answer for
some. However, there are things one can do for himself.
The first step to relieve debt is not to make any more.
There are very creative ways to save money. Ben Franklin said,"A
penny saved is a penny earned." Bill Gothard said several years
ago, "A dollar saved is a dollar sixty earned!" In other words,
taking into account the multitude of obvious and hidden taxes,
working expenses, etc., one then needed to earn $1.60 in order to
have $1.00 to spend! How much do we have left today?!
One of the best and most practical resources for saving
money is Dr. Alfred W. Munzert's book, POOR RICHARD'S ECONOMIC
SURVIVAL MANUAL (Franklinville, NY: Hemisphere Publications,
1982). Dr. Munzert raised a large family on a teacher's salary
and his children received a college education. I am still amazed
by many of the strategies he used. Buy the book, or request it
at your library.
Making arrangements for a reduced payment to each creditor
is one alternative to get rid of debt. If you need help, call
the National Foundation for Consumer Credit at 1-800-388-2227.
Bankruptcy is another alternative. In their anguish, some
have chosen to use this law that provides protection from
creditors. You can file for bankruptcy yourself, but it is
probably best to hire a competent bankruptcy lawyer. I went
through a chapter 7 bankruptcy and did the filing myself, since I
could not afford a lawyer at the time. The best resource that I
found was Kenneth J. Doran's book, PERSONAL BANKRUPTCY AND DEBT
ADJUSTMENT (New York: Random House, 1991). It is written in
plain English, with legal terms explained. Be sure to use
up-to-date-forms (I had to re-submit some forms because of this).
The new forms were expensive, so I copied them from Clark,
Boardman and Callaghan, BANKRUPTCY CODE, RULES AND OFFICIAL FORMS
(New York: The Lawyers Cooperative Publishing Company, 1991). A
friend paid my filing fee. I made it with God's help and you
can, too!
Avoid bankruptcy if possible by solving financial problems
early on. Financial stress will make you sick--I know from
firsthand experience.
END