A Country at War
The United States has been at war for many years. Through this time, rarely has the government asked the people to make financial sacrifices to fund the daily expenditure of engaging in military conflicts, on several foreign fronts. It seems that politicians steer away from asking the nation to face the harsh economic realities of a country at war.
Unfortunately, funds now are not readily available for the basics which the citizens, for the most part, take for granted. An example is the cost of maintaining the roads and bridges of the country. This becomes a temporary priority when there is a major tragedy. However, funds are needed for maintenance and to prevent future catastrophes. Another example is school funding. The efficiency of the school system can be assessed by the drop out rate. It is shocking. The days when a person can make up for a lack of a high school education by hard work are long gone. There might be a few exceptions but the students who drop out eventually will needs assistance in one form or another.
These are just a few examples. Each day, the national debt increases. Each day, the spending continues. Where is the long term perspective of fiscal responsibility and resolving the debt? Asking for financial sacrifice does not make a politician popular. Short term solutions, without long term insight, do not address the problem. It is unconscionable to present quick fixes as corrections for this crisis.
People can respond to the truthful, harsh reality. And they would do what is necessary. Unfortunately, politicians know that the simple truth of bad news would not be good for the immediate poll numbers.
Catherine Forsythe
Tags: debt, economy, infrastructure, leadership, war
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February 15th, 2008 at 2:55 pm
Most politicians would rather be popular (and therefore possibly re-elected) than espouse any common sense where fiscal responsibility is concerned. How we have allowed ourselves to become numb to the realities of our national debt and its implications surprises me regularly.
Our national debt will approach 9.5 trillion dollars if the budget just submitted is approved (another 400+ billion in deficit spending NOT COUNTING the Iraq war… how’s that for financial chicanery). For those who don’t know and won’t look it up, here’s one definition of chicanery: “trickery - the use of tricks to deceive someone (usually to extract money from them)”. Our elected leaders are masters of chicanery, and we continue to stick our heads in the sand and allow them to continue the practice, all the while ignoring the seemingly bottomless pit called our national debt.
In round numbers, our population is 300 million. That means for every man, woman and child, their portion of the national debt is around $31,600. If you convert that either to households or persons actually working, the amounts due from each of those entities is much higher by a factor of two to three times more. How many people could stroke a check for $31,600… let alone $63,000 or $94,000+ (if either viewed as households or persons working)? Interest on the national debt is a huge portion of our gross national product. If the debt wasn’t there, our taxes could be that percentage lower.
As citizens, we don’t want to face the realities our staggering national debt imposes. Neither individuals nor corporations can continue operating in the red, and bankruptcies follow. We are facing the same fate as a country. If we continue ignoring these realities, the country will go bust, and it will be a very hard day of reckoning for most people, and the wonderful way of life we have enjoyed will exist no more.