To put a different spin on this, why should I pay back the money I owe if people who borrowed knowing they most probably wouldn't be able to pay it back go bankrupt? Why the hell should I? Let's all have our debts written off...and while we're at it let's get all trainee Lawyers, Doctors and Vets who borrowed similar amounts of money under the same loan agreement with the same bank, claim bankruptcy as well.
There you've identified the problem that causes the terror in the eyes of the banks, the Government and the System.
They are terrified of the return of jingle mail. That's where thousands, tens of thousands, start to simply post their house keys back to the banks. The house is worth tens of thousands of pounds less than they owe on it, they have no savings, few assets and maxed out credit cards. They are men of straw. By going bankrupt they can walk away from it all and then start again. If this goes mainstream then the Western system of debt slavery falls apart.
They have to keep the majority in debt for the majority of their adult lives. It is only by being in debt that they will continue to be good little workers, hold down multiple jobs per household and continue to operate in the economy. The magic force that gets people out of their cosy beds and ferreting around each day running the modern economy. The fruits of which for the wealthy who own all the Capital (about 4% of the world) are the wonderful comfortable lives they lead with health, travel, communications and recreational technology that would have been unimaginable only 50 years ago.
A perfectly viable system and in most ways better for everyone than, say, Communism.
However, they know that they've pushed it too far this time. Gotten too many too far into debt and been too obvious about the immense profits from doing so. So the System is scared. Scared of debt deflation. Scared of debt default. Scared of an attitude change away from rampant consumerism. Scared of civil unrest if the banks fail. Scared of civil disorder if people start walking away from their debts en masse.
They've overcooked it this time and they know it.
Lets be honest. You owe £75k to the bank, you have a pilots license but no job, the interest repayment is £1000 a month and you can only get a job on minimum wage. There is no realistic way out of that. It doesn't matter is the debt is unsecured or secured on a house in negative equity. You're going to go bankrupt and happily if you are young or have no particular family commitments it is going to be easy and painless.
Morality is a sideshow. A bit like oil.
WWW
ps Clear Prop! I've looked back and can't find any poster here giving their opinion that oil would reach $200 so please stop implying that there were.