National Debt Reaches 8 Trillion Dollars!!!

It is not so much the absolute dollar figure of the debt, but rather whether tax revenues are sufficient to make the payments on the debt.

 

Re: Nice...

And what to hyperinflated stock prices have to do with "creating" a balanced budget?

 

Nice one Ted.

 

Re: Re: Nice...

Taxes on transactions and paper profits and increased spending/buying on the part of paper profiteers. The entire economy floated a bit higher as might an ac current on a dc current in an ungrounded system.

 

If we are floating...I hope our boat don't spring a leak.

 

What's interesting is that more money has been spent on entitlement programs for the poor under Bush than in eight years under the Clinton Administration and more money has been spent on fighting AIDS in Africa under Bush than under Clinton; yet Bush is severely criticised for not doing anything for the poor or those with AIDS.

Surplus or not under Clinton, America generally always runs up huge deficits. This is the result of big government and increasingly less and less focus on privatization of governmental services.

 

Mary Ruwart is a very articulate woman who should be the LP Presidential candidate in 2008.

 

BYOA (bring your own analogy).

Boats float on seas of permanence. Economies float on ephemeral wealth. The seas exist despite us and the wealth only because of us. We will create more wealth than we consume or we will die.

Analogies off/

 

Oh heck....

Are you serious? You are not aware how this would boost government revenues? t is simply amazing that I have to point this out to someone on a board that is dedicated to education.

1. Stocks increase value, owners sell stock, pay taxes on capital gains. The higher they rise the more taxes.

2. People sell stock to grow their businesses, this expands the economy leading to profits and wages. People pay taxes on this.

3. People borrow against stock, grow business boost economy leading to profits and wages. People pay taxes on this.

You would a thunk you could have taken a clue that tax revenues fell like a rock when the stock market crashed. The worst of it is that after asking this question on an EXTREMELY simple economic concept you want to come on here at try to debate intelligently about economics and politics!!

Give me a break...

 

Re: Oh heck....

Isn't the whole point of education to teach?

 

Re: Oh heck....

Sorry! When I made that post, all I could think was that you were saying that the government owns lots of stocks (which I didn't think was so - frankly, I don't even think the government is even allowed to own stocks after the Great Depression). But thanks for reminding me about taxes from the sales of stocks.

 

In my opinion this war is Iraq is a waste of risking our soldiers lives, money and time. I found this great site showing the cost of the war in Iraq and what other things this money could be spent on

http://nationalpriorities.org/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=182

The War In Iraq Costs
$220,864,636,964

Instead, we could have fully funded global anti-hunger efforts for
9
years....

The War In Iraq Costs
$220,864,744,213

Instead, we could have provided
10,707,036
students four-year scholarships at public universities."

 

Excellent website Melissa21111

 

"I'm for gold dollars as against baloney dollars."-Al Smith

I saw somewhere on the Motley Fool website (strongly recommended) a demonstration that gold is not a good long term investment. I forget exaclty what the time period was, 100 years or something, but the gist was that a dollar weight of gold THEN buys about as much as a similar weight would NOW. Stocks and even bonds do better.

Okay, I can accept that but...couldn't we have AVOIDED horrible inflation we suffered after leaving a precious metal standard had we stuck with gold and silver? Inflation is a hidden and regressive tax that allows the Government to raise our taxes merely by watching us go into higher and higher brackets. It is a tax increase that no Congressman need identify as such or be held accountable for.

Where in the constitution did the Founders contemplate, not "fixing the value" of coinage but actually determining how much money there is in circulation? Where did Congress get the right, in Henry Adams' words, to declare to be money (unbacked paper) that which is in no sense money?

I know of not a single reputable economist who agrees with me and I am no economist. But it looks to me like paper legal tender amounted to an enormous, unnecessary, and dishonest seizure of power and control that has benefitted the wealthy and powerful who can use severely debased currency to buy hard assets to the detriment of poorer citizens whose assets might well be mostly cash and cash like instruments.

The federal reserve note represents an enormous swindle, near as I can tell.

 

Yes, it does seem to be an endless money pit. As it is, we owe serious amounts of money to foreign countries.

The peoples distaste for this war is currently reflected in the saggging polls.

Take care Melissa!


Abner

 

That is because record numbers of the lower middle class are joining the ranks of the poor.

 

How Much?

 

Would you please provide these "record numbers"?

 

A Zillion...

 

More than enough.



Abner