The banks are pushing for new laws that won't allow people to go through bankruptcy--this is so they can make bad loans and pursue people throughout life.
In ordinary circumstances, if the lenders were doing what they were supposed to in establishing credit-worthiness, I might be on the other side of the issue. (And, BTW, I am not in debt.)
I did have the advantage of establishing my own credit during a time when lenders hadn't gone crazy.
It hasn't been so long ago that I was a poor college student with bad credit. But then, I was making minimum wage and credit was how I made it through school.
Now I am continually flabbergasted by what people are willing to loan me. But considering my income, it really isn't all that amazing. Creditors are, in my experience, within the bounds of reason even if they aren't always conservative. Good credit is a two edged sword. It opens a lot of doors, but you have to judiciously pick which ones to go through. I can't fault a creditor for making the assumption that you won't go hog wild into debt.
A lot of these folks could make ends meet, except for the beer and cigarettes that are more important than the house payment.