Posted on 04/21/2011 10:33:41 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Yea, that's sarcasm.
There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.
The only question I have is this — what is this $57 Trillion being measured as ? Right AMERICAN DOLLARS.
And what’s the value of American Dollars measured against REAL COMMODITIES these days?
So all washington has to do is to figure out how to seize all those household assets for redistribution. No problem, I’m sure everyone will be happy to go along with hat.
I don't want that!
RE: Sweet. Now all we have to do is confiscate 12 trillion of the stored wealth of Americans and we’re home free.
Yes, according to this article : Household net worth is $57T. Public government debt – including the state and local sector – is about $12T.
12 Trillion is just 20% of the private net worth of America.
Obama’s reasoning would then go like this -— BE A PATRIOTIC AMERICAN AND GIVE UP JUST 20% OF WHAT YOU OWN TO MAKE THIS COUNTRY DEBT FREE !!
I guess that’s what the Pelosi’s and the Reed’s have in mind -— America hold a garage sale and can liquidate just 20% or so of their assets for a decent price, then turn over the proceeds to the government, viola’, the crisis is no more!
Why don’t they campaign on this??
read later
So let me get this straight. Their claim is that because our collective net worth can cover our collective debt that we’re not broke?
I assume this isn’t satire and wasn’t intended to be a joke. The only response I can post without getting censored by the moderators is: WTF?!
(I am not an economist. I did not major in economics. And I most certainly did not sleep at a Holiday Inn Express last night.)
I guess if I keep my credit card maxed out, and I keep getting the bank to raise the credit limit, and I keep borrowing money to pay the minimum, I wouldn’t be broke either.
***** In a recent research piece Credit Suisse shows that America is far from being broke. ****
As my little niece said thirty five years ago when she was 5 years old, she wanted a toy.
Her mom said “we don’t have any money for it!”
My neice said...”Well write a check for it!”
“And these are NOT the droids you are looking for...”
And, what about the $100 trillion plus in unfunded liabilities? Or does that require additional garage sales?
Three weeks from tomorrow my son graduates from college with a degree in Actuarial Science. Boy! Is he ever going to have an interesting career?!!!
America is not broke, but the US government is.
But if we cash in everybody’s estate and sell everybody’s house, who will the buyers be?
The problem with this circular line of thinking is that the wealth that is in American’s hands can mostly only be sold to Americans. If that is the case, if confiscated, there will be no buyers and therefore no value.
I'm mystified. If total government debt including obligations of the states is $12T why does the debt ceiling have to be raised above $14.3T for the Federal Government alone ?
Also there's the small matter of the Net Present Value of the future obligations of the Federal Government Social programs (Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Federal pensions etc etc ) currently estimated at anything between $48T and $78T. ( Future Pension obligations of the States and Municipalities of course are not included). The Federal Government is a bit like Enron, the nasty bits are kept off the balance sheet.
So does one of my nieces!
re: ““Some of our senior politicians and market pundits say it every day: “America is broke.””
This is the essential lie. No one is saying that America as a people are broke - IT IS THE U.S. GOVERNMENT THAT IS BROKE!!
It is the government that is committing us to debt that it cannot pay - because it is the government that is over spending!
re: “America is not broke, but the US government is.”
Exactly right!
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