Sunday, September 30, 2007

The Nation's Most Pressing Problem

..isn't the war in Iraq
..isn't some guy with a turban
..isn't some 3rd world nation that might develop one nuclear weapon

It's the nation's road to bankruptcy.
Every single empire in history has ended by going bankrupt:
book: Empire of Debt


I posted earlier that the debt per man, woman and child was $160,000, and the Compound Interest Paradox:
http://rabbit-hole-journey.blogspot.com/2007/08/debt-is-slavery.html

The US Government's Top Accountant, David Walker of the General Accountability Office, has been doing the lecture circuit to make more people aware of the issue. He has given up on trying to convince government on the magnitude of the problem, and has started talking to businesspeople and the academe.

The government fiscal burden per full-time worker, is $375,000! That is on top of one's personal debt (mortgage, car, etc). He explains that it is like having a $375,000 mortgage with no house.

Here is a segment from 60 Minutes about him and his message. It is 11 minutes long and pretty well done:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/03/01/60minutes/main2528226.shtml

Here is his video presentation in 2 parts:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIgrxpp97OQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXr_Ga_n0pY

Why is the Federal government continually spending more and more, way beyond tax collections? Why is the Federal government borrowing more and more from the Federal Government, and from China, and getting deeper and deeper in debt? Why is the Federal government promising more and more in future entitlements that it can't afford? Why is the Federal government borrowing more and more, against our future earnings, and our children's future earnings? How can it possibly be sustainable?

How is it that few people even realize the magnitude of the problem?

1 comment:

FSK said...

It isn't sustainable. At some point, there will be tax increases, larger inflation, or cuts in government services.

At some point, people will start saying "I'm defaulting on the national debt. As much as possible, I'm not paying income taxes anymore."