Yes they did. Default is a real thing and that's the risk you earn a premium for taking. On equity the price of the asset can change, on debt you either secure it or charge a rate of interest that reflects your assessment of the risk. Hence the shitty rate of interest on savings accounts - your principal is guaranteed up to a fairly large amount so you earn less.

There's a big difference between default (one party not paying because of difficulty or choice not to) and a deliberate mass social decision to say "oh, let's just forget the whole debt thing" across the entire economy.

Lumping the two cases together is an unjustified equivocation.