
Update: reporter caught in mortgage bubble didn't mention previous bankruptcies - ivankirigin
http://kottke.org/09/05/economics-reporter-gets-caught-in-mortgage-bubble
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tptacek
Edmund Andrews responded to this and claimed that the largest of the BK's was
due to his wife's ex-husband's failure to file tax returns for 5 years.
McArdle points out that you can't simply discharge IRS debts in a normal
bankruptcy. That's two strikes now on Andrews, who continues to collect
plaudits from the journo elites for his courage while evading simple questions
about his story.

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albertsun
Link to the original reporting on this story.

[http://meganmcardle.theatlantic.com/archives/2009/05/the_roa...](http://meganmcardle.theatlantic.com/archives/2009/05/the_road_to_bankruptcy.php)

~~~
dataman85
[http://www.pbs.org/newshour/businessdesk/2009/05/ed-
andrews-...](http://www.pbs.org/newshour/businessdesk/2009/05/ed-andrews-
responds-to-critici.html)

Original NYT author responding to recent revelations.

~~~
calambrac
And McCardle responding to that:

[http://meganmcardle.theatlantic.com/archives/2009/05/edmund_...](http://meganmcardle.theatlantic.com/archives/2009/05/edmund_andrews_has_responded_t.php)

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bkbleikamp
I've always been told that before you marry someone you should discuss money.

Whether that be how much credit card debt and student loans they have
outstanding, how much money they have saved up, or whether they have declared
bankruptcy it is important to know the financial history of someone you are
legally tied to.

~~~
ivankirigin
I shared a bank account with Abby before getting married. Having intertwined
finances is actually good practive. It's also a dead simple way to split
things down the middle. Get a join account, each put in $X/mo., and don't
worry about having to split anything after that. Just pay with the joint
account. If someone makes Y times more, just put in Y*$X, if you're into
punishing success :)

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mattmcknight
In your plan, do you each have individual accounts in addition to the shared
account?

We sort of go the opposite route, with individual accounts for discretionary
spending, and a separate account for paying the fixed costs, including the
allowances to discretionary spending. We found that spending from a shared
account required excessive coordination. It was easier for us to separate the
responsibilities and manage our own budgets, like departments in a
corporation.

~~~
ivankirigin
We lived together, making a lot of the fixed costs shared. We also had
individual accounts, but were students, making discretionary income smaller.

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christofd
Aha. This changes the perspective of that NYT article completely, because the
NYT article does mention (but not blame) the spending habits of the wife
breaking the budget.

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jrockway
Actually, this was one of the main points I took away from that article --
even if you make good financial decisions, your partner can ruin you.
Apparently that is true :)

