[ghufran_syed]

Same, I think I wrote about this before on HN, but I once had my bank freeze the funds in my account, while driving across the country with my kids. We would have ended up sleeping in a park if we couldn't use a 24-hour pawn shop (yay Las Vegas!) with a super-high interest rate to get some cash overnight to pay for the hotel. We paid it back the next day, and we're still super grateful it was available.

When you ban these things, you're imposing your value judgement on others, because you think you know better than "them poor folk".

I am fine with some regulation to make it clear what the cost is, something like: "you are borrowing $100, if you pay it back in 1 month, you will have to pay back $130. If you pay it back in 2 months, touch will pay back a total of $170 etc. ..."

[thaumaturgy]

It is unbelievably arrogant of so many people to keep ascribing motivations to other folks they haven't even talked to.

Hey, it's great that a pawn shop helped you out in your case, where you didn't have a credit card or apparently any other option. That doesn't even a little bit offset the predatory nature of payday loan outfits, and they are predatory. I have no problem with people who want to loan money to other people who have trouble getting loans. I do have a problem with turning it into a business practice that brazenly targets poorer communities and levies fees and interest rates that ensure that poor people stay poor.

But, if it helps make this a more black-and-white issue in your mind, sure, keep believing that people like me are in favor of payday loan regulation just because of our moral superiority complex.

[towelr34dy]

Actually you are being viewed as arrogant not because you support the legislation.

I support one part of the legislation (limiting debits to user accounts).

I don't support another part of the legislation that would basically create a regulatory burden that would make payday lending more akin to credit cards.

As a thinking person, I research what I support and don't.

I look into whether what I support will actually help. This should apply doubly if I'm supporting congress to limit someone else's freedom to associate and engage in 'in state commerce'.

I'm supporting something based on my own personal experience.

Details matter. Let's not keep it at the level some people seem to not be able to get past: "pay day loan bad, people suffer, make illegal, people not suffer". This requires two assumptions: 1- all/the vast majority of pay day users are suffering because of they are stupid and NEED your smart help and 2: no one will offer pay day loans illegally and collect with a bat.