GAO chief warns economic disaster looms (A "Cheery" little piece from AP at election time)

AP on Yahoo ^ | 10/28/06 | Matt Crenson - ap

[Jaysun]

Would you please read that statement over a few times and look for a fatal flaw in the logic....give up? You are comparing against an unknown wealth level at that future time. There is no way you can predict the total wealth in a future decades away. Every previous attempt has been a failure. If the wealth level is high enough, all of the problems cited become solvable.

Don't be silly. Everyone knows that there's only one big pile of money. And the likes of Bill Gates and other greedy bastards have taken more than their share, leaving hoards of poor in their wake.

[Misterioso]

So your wish is for Walker to keep his mouth shut? Is he wrong?

[mgstarr]

I'm waiting.

And you'll continue to wait. All a politician cares about is getting re-elected and they'll promise anyone anything to achieve it. The sad thing is the sheeple who believe it.

[qam1]

Xer Ping

Ping list for the discussion of the politics and social (and sometimes nostalgic) aspects that directly effects Generation Reagan / Generation-X (Those born from 1965-1981) including all the spending previous generations (i.e. The Baby Boomers) are doing that Gen-X and Y will end up paying for.

Freep mail me to be added or dropped. See my home page for details and previous articles.  

[gb63]

only one big pile of money
Are you old enough to remember the comic books with Scrooge McDuck sitting on his pile of money with a shovel?

[Moonman62]

Don't you think it's a bit deceiving to be comparing tomorrow's debts with today's assets?

[Moonman62]

Yes, Walker is wrong.

[Moonman62]

Dear God. I just spat beer out of my nose. Oprah pushing fiscal restraint?

Oprah's genius is making a fortune by catering to dizzy women, not fiscal restraint.

[raybbr]

I would ask the questions.. ..which side of the aisle is willing to put thru meaningful reforms and .. which side is the one that got us bogged down in this social spending mess in the first place? Then vote accordingly..

You can't be talking about recen history. Congreass and GWB have almost doubled the budget in the last five years. Who is left if we can't trust the dems either?

[muawiyah]

Every now and then somebody notices this thing called "the unfunded liability" and panics.

's true ~ they go right out of their nuts and run down the street like their head's on fire.

[ClaireSolt]

This is qa falacious point. "even though they never put money in to fund that particular benefit. There is no putting in to these paygo programs. Current taxes pay current benefits.

[Doe Eyes]

Every now and then somebody notices this thing called "the unfunded liability" and panics.

Its gonna be one heck of a train wreck.

[Cicero]

This is EXACTLY what politicians should be talking about in in election. Instead we are talking about sex lifes and MJF's tremors.

I hate to say it, but the economic mess, notably the balance of payments mess, is too grim to talk about. Both sides are responsible, and have been for the past 30, 40, 50 years, maybe all the way back to FDR.

AP, naturally, is trying to make it look as if it's all Bush's fault.

[muawiyah]

Did you catch that "former Arthur Anderson partner" bit?

Bet he's no smarter today than he was then.

[DManA]

I don't agree with their spin but I applaud anyone for talking about it. Republicans ignoring the issue is a kind of spin in itself.

[DManA]

That is exactly the cartoon bubble that formed in my mind every time AlGore talked about his lock box.

Are you old enough to remember the comic books with Scrooge McDuck sitting on his pile of money with a shovel?

[Jackie]

To All:

David Walker took office in 1998. He is shameless.
.

[Zeppo]

And when you project the gap out to an infinite time horizon, it reaches $60 trillion.

However, when you look at an infinite time horizon, you're looking well past the projected extinction of the human race, so by then it will be somebody else's problem...

[beethovenfan]

The government will try to inflate their way out of the problem. The dollar will go the way of the German mark after WW1. Buy gold.

[gb63]

Don't want to pick on you , but just some observations ...
the economic mess
There has never been a group of people in the history of mankind, that in total, have been as well off as the current population of the US.
the balance of payments mess
Depends on how you look at it. May not be a real problem at all, for reasons too complex to cite at the moment.
it's too grim to talk about.
But it is talked about all the time by doom-and-gloomers.