My guess is those IOU's to SS is part of the "intragovernmental holdings" figure that toddster thinks is just being switched from one pocket to the other and isn't part of the national debt.......of course he's the only one that espouses that view as far as I can tell.
If I write a $1,000,000 IOU to myself and put it into the Toddsterpatriot lockbox, what do I have? According to Al Gore, I've saved $1,000,000 toward my retirement. Just look at that lockbox. Inside a note says, "I, Toddsterpatriot, promise to pay you, Toddsterpatriot, $1,000,000" I guess I can retire tomorrow, right?
I can't do that because I don't think there's anything in any lockbox except some fedgov IOU's which is more debt that'll need repaid down the road.
Hmmmmm...you don't agree that the lockbox holds real assets. I guess I'll have to go to work after all.
Oh, so you can't cite any instance where we were told our national debt is only 4.79T?........and here I was hoping beyond hope you're not as economically illerate(sic) as you've shown here ......sheesh, I am truly disappointed.
So I'm economically illiterate? According to your logic, the asset in my lockbox isn't real, but I still owe $1,000,000. The interest alone is going to cost be over $50,000 a year. All to pay for the asset you admitted wasn't real. Boy, I wish I hadn't written that IOU, because my assets used to be zero, but now I owe $1,000,000 and $50,000 a year in interest. I'm just glad I didn't write myself a $2,000,000 IOU, because then I'd really be screwed.
Hmmmmmm......your logic sounds wrong. What if we took Al Gore's idea, $1,000,000 in the lockbox is an asset and american spirit's idea, $1,000,000 IOU is a liability and add them together? $1,000,000 asset minus $1,000,000 liability equals zero. Hmmmmm......I can't retire but at least I don't need to repay $1,000,000 in debt (plus interest). I'm back to where I started, zero.
So who said two wrongs (american spirit + Al Gore) don't make a right (Toddsterpatriot)?