tbf, it can't afford either. It can't afford anything. It stopped being able to afford anything a good while back.
The only way it's paying for any of this is by going deeply into debt it never intends to pay back so the next generations can pay for our greed instead.
It's basically selling future generations into slavery because we're too proud to live within our means. Meanwhile, you've got one group trying to increase spending and another group trying to cut taxes when we need to do the opposite of both.
The only way it's paying for any of this is by going deeply into debt it never intends to pay back so the next generations can pay for our greed instead.
It's basically selling future generations into slavery because we're too proud to live within our means. Meanwhile, you've got one group trying to increase spending and another group trying to cut taxes when we need to do the opposite of both.
The state of perpetually growing debt is a relatively new invention. In 1776 the US government accrued credit debt, and over the next couple decades ended up accumulating additional debt paying off the loans of the different states that have joined the union. On January 8, 1835, president Andrew Jackson paid off the entire national debt. The United States civil war resulted in a very large Federal debt, and over the next 47 years paid off 55% of that debt. A large debt was accrued during world war 1, and eventually 36% of that debt was paid off prior to world war II. From 1945 to 1949, the federal government paid back about six billion dollars of the massive debts that it had accrued. By that time there was a lot of inflation going on so from 1950s onwards the inflation adjusted value of the debt shrank but the real value of the debt grew until the 1970s when it started to grow in inflation adjusted terms again. There's one year in 2000 when there was a budget surplus, but since 2000 it's basically been rushing from crisis to crisis running up dangerously high debts the whole way.
Government policy since 2001 has not been sustainable and is not sustainable, but in 2001 the federal debt was equal to roughly 55% of the US economy, and now it is worth approximately 125% of the US economy. This path wasn't sustainable 20 years ago, but it's not sustainable in the short term the way things are going. The bridge is out ahead, it's a long way down from here.
Government policy since 2001 has not been sustainable and is not sustainable, but in 2001 the federal debt was equal to roughly 55% of the US economy, and now it is worth approximately 125% of the US economy. This path wasn't sustainable 20 years ago, but it's not sustainable in the short term the way things are going. The bridge is out ahead, it's a long way down from here.
You're right. When I overspend it hurts me when the day of reckoning arrives. When the US overspends, that day of reckoning will hurt the entire globe.
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I guess if you're disconnected from reality it doesn't have any basis in reality.
We're already experiencing a slice of that day of reckoning, and in fact the entire world is hurting from it. It hasn't even actually gotten bad yet.
We're already experiencing a slice of that day of reckoning, and in fact the entire world is hurting from it. It hasn't even actually gotten bad yet.
As I said initially: You're right, but you're incredibly wrong.
Debt service is similar to what it was in 2008 when the federal debt was a quarter of what it is today because of the central bank inducing record low interest rates. Those low interest rates caused massive debt bubbles that have priced an entire generation out of owning a home, massively increased household debt, created massive wealth inequality, and driven inflation to the highest levels in 40 years. The productive economy has been stagnant or shrinking for 20 years, while people get rich on get rich quick schemes and many others lose everything on scams.
Finally central banks are loosening up on the extreme measures because cost of living rising is becoming a problem, debt costs are rising for everyone. No problem for people who planned for debt costs to rise, but big problem for individuals who took out huge variable rate mortgages, big problem for companies that are holding massive amounts of debt because that's what kept their companies running for the past 20 years, and big problem for governments who suddenly have to pay 2008 debt service costs for 2022 levels of debt.
So a few things happen. First, rates rise so the amount of money getting sent to bond holders increases. This starts off with short-term debt, then spreads over time to longer term debt. Second, in order to get more debt governments around the world need to sell bonds, and it can happen and has happened that governments go out to sell some debt and they come back no-bid. This just happened to Japan, leading to some very extreme actions just to keep things from totally collapsing (which incidentally resulted in more treasuries on the market which isn't going to help the debt costs or the trip towards no-bid). What happens third depends on the decision makers. If decision-makers decide to get things back on track, then it means much higher taxes and much lower spending. This happened in Canada when they went no-bid in the late 1990s. Alternatively, they can bring in QE infinity, and just have the central bank buy up all the bonds to keep a market. This will prevent bond rates from going to the moon, but it'll cause a currency crisis. That's what happened in Japan recently due to their yield control strategy of QE. At this point, the Bank of Japan owns almost 70% of bonds, and the yen has been on the precipice of falling into oblivion for months. The BoJ has had to sell massive amounts of US Treasuries to buy back enough Yen to keep the value from becoming totally worthless, and they have lots of US treasuries but it's a limited amount. Once that happens, quality of life for any Japanese people not holding their assets in foreign denominations will collapse because the cost of everything will be going up while their savings, wages, and government income streams will all be staying the same. Same as we're getting a taste of over here.
This isn't like a home budget. You can't just wipe the slate and start over like you can in a consumer bankruptcy. 6 years and the credit bureau doesn't even care anymore. It's a nation, and excess debts have destroyed economies, destroyed countries, destroyed empires. It's left millions begging in the streets and caused civil revolutions that killed millions. Even if the shit doesn't hit the fan, the measures used to deal with these problems have massive consequences for innocent people on the ground, and they already have in countless examples around the world and at home.
Debt service is similar to what it was in 2008 when the federal debt was a quarter of what it is today because of the central bank inducing record low interest rates. Those low interest rates caused massive debt bubbles that have priced an entire generation out of owning a home, massively increased household debt, created massive wealth inequality, and driven inflation to the highest levels in 40 years. The productive economy has been stagnant or shrinking for 20 years, while people get rich on get rich quick schemes and many others lose everything on scams.
Finally central banks are loosening up on the extreme measures because cost of living rising is becoming a problem, debt costs are rising for everyone. No problem for people who planned for debt costs to rise, but big problem for individuals who took out huge variable rate mortgages, big problem for companies that are holding massive amounts of debt because that's what kept their companies running for the past 20 years, and big problem for governments who suddenly have to pay 2008 debt service costs for 2022 levels of debt.
So a few things happen. First, rates rise so the amount of money getting sent to bond holders increases. This starts off with short-term debt, then spreads over time to longer term debt. Second, in order to get more debt governments around the world need to sell bonds, and it can happen and has happened that governments go out to sell some debt and they come back no-bid. This just happened to Japan, leading to some very extreme actions just to keep things from totally collapsing (which incidentally resulted in more treasuries on the market which isn't going to help the debt costs or the trip towards no-bid). What happens third depends on the decision makers. If decision-makers decide to get things back on track, then it means much higher taxes and much lower spending. This happened in Canada when they went no-bid in the late 1990s. Alternatively, they can bring in QE infinity, and just have the central bank buy up all the bonds to keep a market. This will prevent bond rates from going to the moon, but it'll cause a currency crisis. That's what happened in Japan recently due to their yield control strategy of QE. At this point, the Bank of Japan owns almost 70% of bonds, and the yen has been on the precipice of falling into oblivion for months. The BoJ has had to sell massive amounts of US Treasuries to buy back enough Yen to keep the value from becoming totally worthless, and they have lots of US treasuries but it's a limited amount. Once that happens, quality of life for any Japanese people not holding their assets in foreign denominations will collapse because the cost of everything will be going up while their savings, wages, and government income streams will all be staying the same. Same as we're getting a taste of over here.
This isn't like a home budget. You can't just wipe the slate and start over like you can in a consumer bankruptcy. 6 years and the credit bureau doesn't even care anymore. It's a nation, and excess debts have destroyed economies, destroyed countries, destroyed empires. It's left millions begging in the streets and caused civil revolutions that killed millions. Even if the shit doesn't hit the fan, the measures used to deal with these problems have massive consequences for innocent people on the ground, and they already have in countless examples around the world and at home.
Yes, you're right.
In other posts I've talked about how the dot com bubble was just the first of many massive debt bubbles caused by too much liquidity in the system. It crashed, so they added more liquidity to cause the housing bubble, it crashed, so they added more liquidity to cause the second tech bubble, it crashed so they started to add more liquidity and inflation finally hit their fake numbers (they changed inflation calculations starting in the 1980s and more later so they could inflate more without it being caught in the numbers)
So now they're stuck between a rock and a hard place -- If they look like they're not going to tackle this inflation then theres's going to be a currency crisis, but if they don't dump more liquidity into the system there's going to be a market crash and ultimately a recession that could turn into a depression.
It's not just war, it's the fact that making the market go up keeps the donor class happy and crushes the working classes. The rich don't care about the federal debt, they can just move their wealth elsewhere and they do.
In other posts I've talked about how the dot com bubble was just the first of many massive debt bubbles caused by too much liquidity in the system. It crashed, so they added more liquidity to cause the housing bubble, it crashed, so they added more liquidity to cause the second tech bubble, it crashed so they started to add more liquidity and inflation finally hit their fake numbers (they changed inflation calculations starting in the 1980s and more later so they could inflate more without it being caught in the numbers)
So now they're stuck between a rock and a hard place -- If they look like they're not going to tackle this inflation then theres's going to be a currency crisis, but if they don't dump more liquidity into the system there's going to be a market crash and ultimately a recession that could turn into a depression.
It's not just war, it's the fact that making the market go up keeps the donor class happy and crushes the working classes. The rich don't care about the federal debt, they can just move their wealth elsewhere and they do.