Old School

clipped from pajamasmedia.com Carpenter is among the vast majority of Americans who work, pay mort gages, borrow responsibly, and now find themselves facing the bill to bail out those who didn’t. Over the years they lived within their means. Now they’re asking: What for? The anger underscores the dangers government faces in private sector rescues. . . . Randy Schmid, 50, of Worcester, is one of them. A self-employed consultant, Schmid and his wife Dominika are renters. They looked into buying a home a few years ago. They hoped to find a house they could afford on a single income, so if one of them lost work, they could still meet their obligations. They didn’t. “If we would have lived beyond our means,” he said, “we would have gotten a handout.” How long can a system that punishes virtue and rewards greed and profligacy flourish?