Up to our eyeballs …

[phantom power]

The national debt is more than eight and a quarter trillion dollars. In the first five months of the fiscal year, we paid almost 174 billion in interest on that debt, about seven times the cost of fighting in Iraq over the same period. Last year, we paid 350 billion in interest, about 15 percent of the federal budget.

During eight years under Clinton, the U.S. added 1.6 trillion to the national debt. It's skyrocketed during five years under Bush -- increasing by 2.6 trillion dollars, a rise of about 45 percent.

(...)

Add to that almost $2.2 trillion dollars in consumer debt. But that doesn't include debts secured by real estate. We don't know what that number is today, but the most recent Household Finance Survey, for 2001, put it at almost $5 trillion dollars. Throw in around a trillion in corporate debt -- give or take -- and, wow, we're talking about some large numbers (you can't add up all these figures for a total because there's some overlap).

But what's interesting is the justification for whistling by this particular graveyard. If I had a nickel for every time someone's said, "Luckily, Chinese and Japanese central banks won't pull the plug on the dollar because it would ruin their own economies," I'd have … quite a few nickels.

While I agree with the premise -- central banks as well as the IFIs would have to do everything they could to intervene if the dollar were being punished badly -- there are two reasons why this doesn't give much comfort. First, it assumes that there are forces that are firmly in control of financial markets. While the Bretton Woods institutions went a long way towards a set of tools to stabilize markets, nobody is really in control. Governments hold only 42 percent of the national debt; individuals and private institutions hold the rest. Investors aren't known for looking at the big picture, and they can panic in a pack.

http://gadflyer.com/flytrap/index.php?Week=200610#2604

[neoblues]

1. If only Republicans were able to realize...

Debt = Bad. Seems like they once understood; perhaps not.

It seems patently obvious that our current national leadership (which alas, is Republican), is intentionally attempting to destroy both our economy and our future. It's so obvious but so inconceivable (as well as terrifically painful if real) most can't even see it (and those who can, can't admit it).

If the nation was a bus, the political leadership was the driver and we were the passengers... Our bus has been running out of control, smashing other cars on the road and flipping the bird at the rest while roaring towards the unfinished bridge (or cliff) as fast as it will go. We're looking out the windows in bewilderment--this isn't the right road, we're going too fast, we shouldn't be destroying those cars and pissing off everybody--we don't have the insurance coverage. More and more of us are reaching the conclusion that our driver is mad/insane. Clearly, his family owns the auto-repair businesses and will profit from all the money we passengers will be sued for, but that hardly seems sufficient explanation. It seems as though our driver figures that if he can somehow gain control over certain other cars and destroy others that somehow, that will ensure that our bus will remain the most powerful vehicle on the road. Only thing is, even if that were true and even if it was something that was beneficial in some way... it ignores the fact that since our driver also is wearing blinders--and can't seem to see ahead that the bridge is out (we're headed for a cliff) and none of it will matter when we go off the edge. Then most of us will drown like rats (or be dashed on the rocks/killed in the explosion) with only the few who were thrown clear surviving (except for those who own the bus who are sitting safe at home in their mansions). We all should have been suspicious when it was plain that the driver had an ejection seat with a golden parachute installed.

[Warpy]

2. This has gotten too bad for Repugs to swallow much longer

and no matter what happens in 2006, I think we can expect Congress to start to put the brakes on Stupid's gang of thieves. They'll do some more cosmetic cuts to social spending, but I think most of them realize that they've absolutely got to put a stop to things like corporate welfare and military overspending.

It should be fun to watch.

[shrike]

3. Hope it's not too late in the game

Our problems seem so astronomical to me at this point that I have to wonder if we'll make any headway without a lot of suffering. But maybe I'm just too gloomy for my own good.

[phantom power]

4. Digging out of debt hurts. Person or Country. 8 trillion bucks of hurt.

[shrike]

5. You got that right. n/t