The National Debt

Today a headline appeared bemoaning the fact that the National Debt Clock had run out of spaces for more digits. This alarmed me because of how completely confounding this whole situation is. We (the USA) are operating on a debt the likes of which we have never before seen. The current $10,000,000,000,000 (that's ten trillion dollars) deficit is so big that, barring any further deficit spending, it will take us 35-50 years to pay off--if we ever get it paid off.

What really amazes me though, is just why the American people are not demanding answers as to the why's of this thing. How did the debt get so bad?; who authorized all that spending?; when did Congress ask for input from the American people on the current spending?; Why is our President standing by and allowing this to happen instead of demanding a stop to the madness?, etc, etc.

A little info here...

Every one of the Fifty States are required by the Federal Government (and their own State Constitutions) to carry a Balanced Budget. At the end of every year, they must be balanced, or in the black. Yet, the Federal government is under no such rule. They typically carry an ever increasing deficit.

During the Clinton Administration, the White House and Congress hammered out a cohesive, cooperative plan to balance the Federal deficit by the year 2010. Social Security was saved, the military was strong, social programs were intact, and by the end of Clinton's Presidency, the US was not only operation on a yearly budget surplus, we were actually able to decrease the deficit blance by some $450 Billion. We were well on our way to fiscal freedom (and should by now, be a little over a year from it).

At the time, our national Debt had decreased to around $2.5 trillion (down from $3 trillion) over the previous 4 years), and we could all see the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel.

Then, in steps George W. Bush and Cronies. One of the first things they did was plunder Social Security to pay for pet projects. Deficit spending ramped up once again, and all the work that a two-term President and Bi-Partisan Congress had done to ensure the financial well-being of this country was suddenly, inexplicably tossed out. Why? Congress seemed to roll over and not care that all they work that had been done was for nothing. They demanded no answers. They demanded zero accountability.

So, two ongoing wars later, plus an ongoing energy crisis, plus the rape of our lands for profit benefitting energy companies, plus unprecedented deficit spending, and we are in a hole that our great-grandchildren will be paying off (or at least, trying to...).

What a wonderful legacy this lame-duck President is leaving for the American people. I bet he doesn't lose a bit of sleep knowing that while his pals in Energey, Special Interest Lobbies, and Mining companies are making tens of millions, the average American family is having to choose between feeding themselves, paying bills, and having a place to live.

I sure am glad he can sleep knowing what he and his Administration have done over the past 8 years. Good for him...