Posted on 01/14/2011 2:56:28 AM PST by Scanian
Moody's is warning that unless we change our ways, our bonds will be downgraded.
This doesn't mean it will happen or happen anytime soon. We're not going to slide to junk bond status tomorrow, although if Obama can't be stopped, who knows where our rating will end up. But if you listen to these guys, they don't sound real confident we'll be able to change.
The Wall Street Journal:
"Moody's Investors Service said in a report on Thursday that the U.S. will need to reverse the expansion of its debt if it hopes to keep its 'Aaa' rating. 'We have become increasingly clear about the fact that if there are not offsetting measures to reverse the deterioration in negative fundamentals in the U.S., the likelihood of a negative outlook over the next two years will increase,' Sarah Carlson, senior analyst at Moody's, said.
Separately, Carol Sirou, head of Standard & Poor's France, told a Paris conference on Thursday that the firm couldn't rule out lowering the outlook for the U.S. rating in the future. 'The view of markets is that the U.S. will continue to benefit from the exorbitant privilege linked to the U.S. dollar' to fund its deficits, Ms. Sirou said. 'But that may change.'
However, Ms. Sirou, who has an administrative role and has no say in sovereign ratings, was mainly reiterating statements the agency has made in the past. She specifically referred to a comment more than two years ago by John Chambers, chairman of S&P's sovereign-rating committee, suggesting that AAA ratings can always be changed."
How the mighty have fallen, eh? And let's be realistic, this is a process that has been happening for 40 years. We are reaping what we have sowed by spending more than we take in. And probably sooner rather than later, the rest of the world will break up the party for us and we'll be left with a major league hangover and a lot of worthless party paper.
Moodys will rate you however you want if you pay them. They are a joke.
Maybe so, but we NEED to STOP SPENDING! The debt is out of control, along with our “leaders.”
The debt is not out of control. It is beyond the point of no return. There is no hope of paying it.
| Year | Gross Debt in Billions undeflated[11] |
as % of GDP | Debt Held By Public ($Billions) |
as % of GDP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910 | 2.6 | 7.8 | 2.6 | 7.8 |
| 1920 | 25.9 | 29.3 | 25.9 | 29.3 |
| 1928 | 18.5[12] | 19.0 | 18.5 | 19.0 |
| 1930 | 16.2 | 17.8 | 16.2 | 17.8 |
| 1940 | 50.6 | 52.4 | 42.8 | 44.2 |
| 1950 | 256.8 | 94.0 | 219.0 | 80.2 |
| 1960 | 290.5 | 56.0 | 236.8 | 45.6 |
| 1970 | 380.9 | 37.6 | 283.2 | 28.0 |
| 1980 | 909.0 | 33.4 | 711.9 | 26.1 |
| 1990 | 3,206.3 | 55.9 | 2,411.6 | 42.0 |
| 2000 | 5,628.7 | 58.0 | 3,409.8 | 35.1 |
| 2001 | 5,769.9 | 57.4 | 3,319.6 | 33.0 |
| 2002 | 6,198.4 | 59.7 | 3,540.4 | 34.1 |
| 2003 | 6,760.0 | 62.6 | 3,913.4 | 35.1 |
| 2004 | 7,354.7 | 63.9 | 4,295.5 | 37.3 |
| 2005 | 7,905.3 | 64.6 | 4,592.2 | 37.5 |
| 2006 | 8,451.4 | 65.0 | 4,829.0 | 37.1 |
| 2007 | 8,950.7 | 65.6 | 5,035.1 | 36.9 |
| 2008 | 9,985.8 | 70.2 | 5,802.7 | 40.8 |
| 2009 | 12,311.4 | 86.1 | 7,811.1 | 54.6 |
| 2010 (31 Dec) | 14,025.2 | 95.2 (3rd Q) | 9,390.5 | 63.7 (3rd Q) |
Maybe, it is time to declare national bankruptcy and start over. Put some stronger controls in place to prevent politicians from getting us back into this mess.
All the more reason to repeal obamacare.
The report indicates that government’s spending on healthcare and pensions is a problem.
Note that DoD is not on that list (for those who need to counter libs that say the Iraq/Afghan stuff is bankrupting us).
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703583404576079311379009904.html
Now that would be the right thing to do. Admit the mistakes and start over. Nahhh. Not the current crop.
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