[Hakeer]

The interest on the national debt in 2024 will be $892 billion. That is now even more than the defense budget! Congress won’t do anything about it. Most politicians don’t even want to talk about it, because the solution (cut spending and raise taxes) is painful to their voters and, therefore, their next reelection campaign.

Most economists say it is “unsustainable.” CBO says it will increase over $1 trillion every year for next 10 years. I think it will take an absolute catastrophe in the bond markets to force Congress into some fiscal discipline. That may happen by 2050. Many of us will be dead by then, but our children and grandchildren suffer from our generation running the credit card through the roof. Each generation has a moral responsibility to TRY to make the world a better place for the next. This is a shameful neglect of that responsibility.

Okay, end of rant.

[Truth To Power]

The interest on the national debt in 2024 will be $892 billion. That is now even more than the defense budget! Congress won’t do anything about it. Most politicians don’t even want to talk about it, because the solution (cut spending and raise taxes) is painful to their voters and, therefore, their next reelection campaign.

Most economists say it is “unsustainable.” CBO says it will increase over $1 trillion every year for next 10 years. I think it will take an absolute catastrophe in the bond markets to force Congress into some fiscal discipline. That may happen by 2050. Many of us will be dead by then, but our children and grandchildren suffer from our generation running the credit card through the roof. Each generation has a moral responsibility to TRY to make the world a better place for the next. This is a shameful neglect of that responsibility.

Okay, end of rant.

The national debt is needed to give unearned income to rich, greedy, privileged parasites who want to be paid for being rich, but prefer to avoid the risks associated with productive investment.

[Hakeer]

The national debt is needed to give unearned income to rich, greedy, privileged parasites who want to be paid for being rich, but prefer to avoid the risks associated with productive investment.

Correct. They also want to avoid any responsibility for fixing the problem they created (with lots of help from Congress).

[JohnRawls]

The interest on the national debt in 2024 will be $892 billion. That is now even more than the defense budget! Congress won’t do anything about it. Most politicians don’t even want to talk about it, because the solution (cut spending and raise taxes) is painful to their voters and, therefore, their next reelection campaign.

Most economists say it is “unsustainable.” CBO says it will increase over $1 trillion every year for next 10 years. I think it will take an absolute catastrophe in the bond markets to force Congress into some fiscal discipline. That may happen by 2050. Many of us will be dead by then, but our children and grandchildren suffer from our generation running the credit card through the roof. Each generation has a moral responsibility to TRY to make the world a better place for the next. This is a shameful neglect of that responsibility.

Okay, end of rant.

The debt doesn't matter as long as you grow and the interest is low. China or Japan have a far, far larger debt situation and they are still here while being a less developed economies.

Debt by itself is not bad or good, mismanagement of debt or malinvestment are bad.

The current high interest is related to the current higher interests everywhere.

[wat0n]

The debt doesn't matter as long as you grow and the interest is low. China or Japan have a far, far larger debt situation and they are still here while being a less developed economies.

Debt by itself is not bad or good, mismanagement of debt or malinvestment are bad.

The current high interest is related to the current higher interests everywhere.

Wait to see if long-term projections of US debt materialize before writing this.

[Truth To Power]

Correct. They also want to avoid any responsibility for fixing the problem they created (with lots of help from Congress).

Free money in return for doing and contributing nothing is not a problem for them.

[JohnRawls]

Free money in return for doing and contributing nothing is not a problem for them.

Debt is not free money. It is used for investment or funding which implies risk. You can't become rich or richer without taking in risk.

[Hakeer]

The debt doesn't matter as long as you grow and the interest is low. China or Japan have a far, far larger debt situation and they are still here while being a less developed economies.

Debt by itself is not bad or good, mismanagement of debt or malinvestment are bad.

The current high interest is related to the current higher interests everywhere.

Not all economists agree on this…

• U.S. “public debt outstanding” of $33.2 trillion often cited by media is largely misleading, as it includes $6.8 trillion that the federal government “owes itself” due to trust fund and other accounting. The economics profession has long focused on “debt held by the public”, currently equal to about 98 percent of GDP at $26.3 trillion, for assessing its effects on the economy.

• We estimate that the U.S. debt held by the public cannot exceed about 200 percent of GDP even under today’s generally favorable market conditions. Larger ratios in countries like Japan, for example, are not relevant for the United States, because Japan has a much larger household saving rate, which more-than absorbs the larger government debt.

• Under current policy, the United States has about 20 years for corrective action after which no amount of future tax increases or spending cuts could avoid the government defaulting on its debt whether explicitly or implicitly (i.e., debt monetization producing significant inflation). Unlike technical defaults where payments are merely delayed, this default would be much larger and would reverberate across the U.S. and world economies.

• This time frame is the “best case” scenario for the United States, under markets conditions where participants believe that corrective fiscal actions will happen ahead of time. If, instead, they started to believe otherwise, debt dynamics would make the time window for corrective action even shorter.

https://budgetmodel.wharton.upenn.edu/i ... ble-levels

Even if this projection by the Wharton school is incorrect, the interest costs will continue to be the largest percentage of the federal budget, and will continue to expand indefinitely. Our children and grandchildren will be paying for our greed and fiscal irresponsibility for decades after we are all dead. That is a disgrace. I prefer to assume that the Wharton assessment is correct, and we may have less than 20 years before this explodes in their faces. Even if this is wrong, I don’t know who believes paying down the national debt is a bad idea.

[Truth To Power]

Debt is not free money.

The interest on US government debt is.

It is used for investment or funding which implies risk.

US Treasury debt instruments are considered risk-free.

You can't become rich or richer without taking in risk.

Garbage. If you own land clear title, there is zero risk in accepting the high bid of prospective tenants.

[JohnRawls]

The interest on US government debt is.

US Treasury debt instruments are considered risk-free.

Garbage. If you own land clear title, there is zero risk in accepting the high bid of prospective tenants.

But how did people get that land? They also had to use money and invest in to it which is a risk.

US government debt is risk-free because they produce lower than market returns usually net-zero to inflation but usually not. They are used to store wealth for large funds mostly to be secure or as secure as it can get. But it is not risk-free in reality, it is just the safest financial instrument we got.

On the side of the government it is a risk because it has to be paid back at interest so the basic idea is to grow faster now. So it is an investment from the side of the government basically. Although it might go to just funding things that are not investment aka reduced taxes.

[Truth To Power]

But how did people get that land?

It doesn't matter. Making the high bid.

They also had to use money and invest in to it which is a risk.

No it isn't.

[JohnRawls]

It doesn't matter. Making the high bid.

No it isn't.

Then why don't you go buy some land? I don't understand its a risk free forever growth according to you? You can say that you don't have money or whatever, but the bank should be easy to convince to give you any kind of loan for a forever increasing risk free product.

[Truth To Power]

Then why don't you go buy some land?

"Why not just buy some slaves of your own? Problem solved!"

I don't understand its a risk free forever growth according to you? You can say that you don't have money or whatever, but the bank should be easy to convince to give you any kind of loan for a forever increasing risk free product.

You are even unaware of the fact that banks lend overwhelmingly for real estate purchases, and are extremely reluctant to lend for real estate that does not include a land title?

Oh, and FYI, land is not a product.

[JohnRawls]

"Why not just buy some slaves of your own? Problem solved!"

You are even unaware of the fact that banks lend overwhelmingly for real estate purchases, and are extremely reluctant to lend for real estate that does not include a land title?

Oh, and FYI, land is not a product.

Stop circumventing, the question was real. The question was then why doesn't everyone do it if it is such a risk-free forever growth initiative. You straight away went in to slavery(LOL) and then in to some rambling. I am asking you why don't you personally go buy land with or without a loan if it is such easy no-risk free money that can never backfire.

[Truth To Power]

The question was then why doesn't everyone do it if it is such a risk-free forever growth initiative.

Thanks to the efforts of evil liars, very few people understand it; and of those who do, thanks to the efforts of greedy parasites, many cannot afford it; and of those who can afford it, many have moral objections to it.

You straight away went in to slavery(LOL)

There is a simple test for your arguments: any argument that could be used to justify chattel slavery, as yours could, is already known in advance to be fallacious, disingenuous and evil, with no further argumentation needed.

and then in to some rambling.

That is a fabrication on your part.

I am asking you why don't you personally go buy land with or without a loan if it is such easy no-risk free money that can never backfire.

Buying land is betting on injustice. While it is often the safest bet, those who bet on injustice have placed themselves on the side of evil, and deserve to lose all their money.

[Skynet]

USA has just not even 100% of GDP... this debt you can pay back Japan is at +180% of the GDP.

The USA has the best demographics of industrialized countries.

Joe Biden's anti-inflation-act created many middle and lower class jobs.

The USA has also low energy cost...

[Hakeer]

USA has just not even 100% of GDP... this debt you can pay back Japan is at +180% of the GDP.

The USA has the best demographics of industrialized countries.

Joe Biden's anti-inflation-act created many middle and lower class jobs.

The USA has also low energy cost...

For 2024, the debt to GDP ratio will be 124%. That is very high by historical standards.

Comparisons to Japan are misleading. This is a very interesting article from St. Louis Federal Reserve. They understand this stuff better than any of us…

https://www.stlouisfed.org/on-the-econo ... -gdp-ratio

Their conclusion: “…we should not rely on the Japanese experience to predict the U.S. fiscal situation.”

[Skynet]

For 2024, the debt to GDP ratio will be 124%. That is very high by historical standards.

Comparisons to Japan are misleading. This is a very interesting article from St. Louis Federal Reserve. They understand this stuff better than any of us…

https://www.stlouisfed.org/on-the-econo ... -gdp-ratio

Their conclusion: “…we should not rely on the Japanese experience to predict the U.S. fiscal situation.”

You are right with the 124% but up to 170% then it is dangerous for a country. The US came within 20 Years from 56% to 124%. An default scenario at 170% can be avoided, if the country manages properly its income.

[Hakeer]

You are right with the 124% but up to 170% then it is dangerous for a country. The US came within 20 Years from 56% to 124%. An default scenario at 170% can be avoided, if the country manages properly its income.

I don’t know whether 170% is the magic number, but I do know I don’t want to find out and we’ve been trending in that direction.

[JohnRawls]

You are right with the 124% but up to 170% then it is dangerous for a country. The US came within 20 Years from 56% to 124%. An default scenario at 170% can be avoided, if the country manages properly its income.

Not really. China is around 120% for its government if you take national debt + local governments together. And China is way, way, way less underdeveloper on per capita basis which is important here. They are okay and its only a problem if the interest gets out of hand and the growth stops or slows down severely.

As mentioned, there are countries with far larger debts like Luxembourg with a wooping 3800% total debt to gdp ratio or something. Once again, debt size is irrelevant. What is relevant is how fast you grow and how well you manage the interest.