Is America going broke?

Macleans.CA ^ | March 02, 2005 | STEVE MAICH

[RobRoy]

For your analysis. Kind of reminds me of Revelation 18.

[peyton randolph]

We're doomed. Kind of reminds me of a FedEx commercial.

[John Lenin]

Time to start over anyways, maybe we will get a 10% flat tax like Russia ?

[Dad2Angels]

I don't know about America, but I sure am.

[Yo-Yo]

Put all of these figures as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product, and things are about the same as they have been for the last 30 years.

[mpreston]

Not included in this debt issue is the disconnect between the private and public sectors. Example - LA's school districts $5billion underfunding of retirement contracts. The public sector negotiates themselves nice retirement plans while the private sector has to compete globally and pay for these plans. A private sector example is GM. The private sector has to deal with it's books or go out of business while the public sector raises taxes and retires.

Prediction - the next storm.

[SoDak]

In January 2001, George W. Bush took over leadership of a nation that was on its most solid financial footing in decades, thanks to years of strong economic growth and a booming stock market.

Uh, No, we were in recession, and the stock market was down, and the dot com bomb had exploded. I lost a LOT of money in the summer of 2000. This writer is totally full of it.

[RobRoy]

I agree with your assesment there. However, even though it was a bubble burst, it hadn't completely burst before he took office. I'm afraid this guy worded it in such a way as to blame Bush, which causes me to question his motives.

[expatpat]

Kind of reminds me of the Canuck left.

[RichInOC]

I might take this more seriously if the Canadians knew what they were doing.

[dennisw]

btttt

[skeeter]

The USA is in a 43 trillion dollar hole because Bush eliminated the marraige tax.

Sure thing.

[Dead Corpse]

I stopped reading at that very sentance.

[snowsislander]

Put all of these figures as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product, and things are about the same as they have been for the last 30 years.

Our net external debt is climbing rapidly as a percentage of GDP.

[wideawake]

"It's that, if you make the Bush tax cuts permanent, you're going to have deficits as far as the eye can see."

This article is hogwash.

If you make the tax cuts permanent and reduce federal spending on non-defense-related garbage, there will be no deficits.

[RobRoy]

And as I read more and more of it I am starting to feel real guilty for posting this. I'm going to go off and sulk...

[ikka]

The result of some 60 years of deficit spending and the corrupt, 70-year-old Social Security ponzi scheme is of course, Bush's fault... that was my take on the article.

[Willie Green]

Put all of these figures as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product,

And it would be a meaningless apples-to-oranges comparison.

[CGTRWK]

So who would you blame instead? The Bush administration has not merely presided over but actively campaigned for most measures of the largest overall expansion of the federal government since LBJ.

Deficit spending is not "free", and paying for the last 3 years (and the next 5) will mean enormous tax hikes in the near future. Don't think a return to a 39% top individual bracket. Think hike to over 50%. FICA to 18%. Excise increases to match.

If a Dem administration had tried to spend money anything like the last term, we would be absolutely seething and vote them out in a landslide like 1994 all over again. When Bush does it, we cheer for him and question the motives of people who run the numbers.

It's a long night ahead.

[maestro]

More Credit Cards.......from foreign 'powers'.......?