[Mrs. Don-o]

I unerstand what you're saying, and I, too, was surprised (unpleasaty) by Zmirak's neglect of that point. In pre-capitalist days, practically the only reason to borrow money was because you had some calamity --- your barn burned down - your horse had a broken leg--- you had a crop failure --- and in those cases the good people of the community were supposed to loan you the money interst-free, or even give you the money, until you were back on your feet.

A neighbr who responded to your barn-brning by lendng you money at interes, would be seen --- in custom and in law --- as an exploiter, not a member of "the community" at all.

In contrast to this, societies where calamities are most covered by insurance, and borrowing is the usual means of capital-accumulation for a profitable business venture, lending at interest is not usury.

But usury still exists. I wish we had better guidance on what is, and what isn't, usury, and why.

[redgolum]

I’ve been wanting a thread on usury for some time