How much longer are we supposed to wait?

So your buddy is down on his luck and needs a place to stay. He comes to you and says. I have this great job opportunity I just need a place to stay until I can get my feet under me. Of course, you say. You are trying and you need my help!

Two weeks later your friend gets a big fat paycheck but instead of paying his share of the groceries and rent he says, hold on just a little while longer. I haven’t made enough yet, and you know once I have enough money I’ll not only pay my share of the bills but I’ll give you a job too and guess what I can sell you stuff really cheap. If you really need money now for the bills, I can give you a loan, but I can’t pay any of the bills yet. I still need to make more money! So you say OK. If I sacrifice a little now we will both be better off for it later.

So it goes, pay day after pay day. The whole time your buddy has been raking it in while not paying any of the bills and if that weren’t bad enough; he is a terrible house guest. He always makes a mess and refuses to clean up after himself. Every time you approach him he says the same thing. If I start paying the bills now or clean up after myself, I won’t be able to give you that job, or sell you this really inexpensive car I just made, or give you this loan…

How long do you keep faith in your friend? How long do you wait for the job? How long does it take you to realize that you wouldn’t need to buy the cheap crap he sells or take the loans he offers, if only he would pay his share of the bills to begin with?

Our home is the USA, and our ‘buddy’ is big business. He has been promising to pay his share for three decades now! How much longer are we supposed to wait?