[ArrogantBustard]

How can debt be made to just disappear?

Creditors sell "bad debt" to collections agencies for pennies on the dollar. The creditor gets something, and no longer cares what happens to the debt. It's no longer their problem. The collections agency is essentially gambling; it's betting that it can collect more on the debt than it paid for it. That's apparently a good bet; collections agencies continue to exist.

The OWSers are apparently buying debt for pennies on the dollar (same as the collections agencies) but then "forgving" the debt instead of attempting to collect (some of) it.

[The Louiswu]

So I can run up a mountain of debt, pay it off for pennies on the dollar and the Rolling Jubilee just refuses to pay it off. I get a bunch of sweet swag for almost nothing?!

Is that how this works?