By ScottBittle on November 20th, 2007

Nine trillion is a staggering number. It’s hard to comprehend. Yet that’s how much the United States government owes at its current national debt. That’s more than triple the total federal budget ($2.6 trillion). And that’s not even counting the estimated $50 trillion of obligations ahead of us for Medicare and Social Security. Unless we act, the problem is going to get much, much worse.

 

It’s tough to get your mind around the debt and its potential implications, and it doesn’t help that this milestone was reached without a lot of media attention. Which is what makes it a perfect topic for the first Facing Up blog carnival.

 

If you’re not familiar with blog carnivals, it’s an event where a group of bloggers all post about a specific topic. One blog (Facing Up, in this case) serves as the organizer and host. All the participating blogs link to the host blog, which then posts a digest with links to all the participants. (You can find out more about carnivals here).

 

We’ve picked “The $9 Trillion Debt” as our first carnival topic. Write about why you think it matters. Write about how this might impact the country and its future. Write about how you’d pay it off. Or write about any other aspect of the debt that you think is important. The deadline for submissions is Dec. 10, and we plan to have the digest of all the entries posted by Dec. 13. Send us an e-mail when your post is up, either to editorial AT publicagenda DOT org, or whallowell AT publicagenda DOT org, with “Blog Carnival” in the subject line. Be sure to include the permalink to your post.

 

Thanks for participating and we’re looking forward to your posts.


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Re: Join the Facing Up Blog Carnival

On November 20th, 2007 BB says:

I just turned 55 and I think everyone my age acknowledges that there will be no Social Security for us.  Maybe some safety net will exist for the poor, but those of us with 401(k)'s and investments will never see a penny.  So, that time bomb will go away or be significantly reduced.  That leaves a mere $9 trillion.

Clinton (Bill) eliminated the debt and created a surplus during his presidency, and he did it relatively quickly.  The greatest hope for Hillary is that she can do the same.  The mess created by the current White House occupant goes well beyond the debt, but that is the most significant.  Whoever becomes President will not lack challenges.

Quite honestly, I benefited from the Bush tax cuts and received the max $600.  I don't even remember what I did with it.  It just went into the account and was comingled with other funds.  It was not considered a big bonus.  I didn't "go out" and spend it.  I didn't enjoy it and I wouldn't have missed it at all.  We never should have implemented those tax cuts.