2 cents: never too far from something bad, never too far from something good. I hear said that our National debt is so large it cannot be paid off, that our productive vitality got given to someone foreign. I say nutz to that. America plays large, mistakes can be huge, and we adapt anew. Under Clinton we had surpluses, and %debt service of GDP fell rapidemento. Useful productivity, besides individual striving, is in part cultural. The US population is if anything post-covid even more wound for change and creation. The manufacturing, agricultural, & invention capability vast. Add in blessed with great resources for most anything, I am of the belief we peeps will be okay. The US gov'ts, well, there's your problem. Taking $ for mischief away from our law-makers due to debt servicing helps slow the Leviathan
"The US gov'ts, well, there's your problem." And this time it may be insurmountable. After decades of economic decline, incompetence and corruption we got Trump, and he comes off totally unappreciated. He may have run deficits, but it was to get the economy rolling and give us a military that would have kept control over Afghanistan and prevented the Ukraine mess. Our politicians in Washington perceived him as a threat and in getting rid of him threw out the baby with the bath water, as the saying goes. Now it is not even clear that we have a rule of law and a system that would allow the installation of dedicated civil servants and get us the level playing field necessary to rebuild this country and make us solvent.
Dear Perle - I am so with your commentary, especially the "unappreciated" part. I too don't see proper justice but a tilted playing field: truly lousy juncture, requiring firm accountability to properly learn from. I can't see the path to that proper land myself, but I see the melting pot and root common-sense of Americans as a bulwark against evil. The systems - media/political/financial (but I repeat myself) - are going to bust, I just don't think we will. Looking at my kids friends, my confidence only goes up.
What is the deal with so-called "Republicans" and their chosen from amongst themselves Speakers ??? Kev is a moron and Dade down here in Texas is an imbecile !!! It is way past time for a House cleaning, you know what I'm saying, that's right folks, stop voting for incumbents in the primaries, STOP DOING THAT ALREADY !!!
What’s the story with republicans in Texas impeaching their republican attorney general? With all of the infighting it won’t be long before the Dems turn the place blue
The impeachment of AG Paxton is just exactly the sort of thing which occurs when the swamp critters don't get their way in an election. Paxton has had some sort of federal securities law violation hanging over his head for both of his prior terms as AG. I personally voted for Louie Gohmert in the primary last time. The powers that be pushed George P. Bush or Eva Guzman, FAIL! But they got most of the swampy jerks that they wanted in the Legislature.
Thanks SCT! That is a bookmark site for sure! I have written my State Rep (from Cleburne, TX) who is supposed to be a conservative who voted for the impeachment and have expressed my disappointment and have sent him a link to the article.
Well said DTLB; and proper action. It's not just information that's required, but understanding. The TSC website presents facts not just accusations helping one to understand. Go Texas! (From Idaho...) Best to you! (WrH)
SC Texan, I truly appreciate that link. It's info was not shared in reporting I've seen and heard on AG Paxton's impeachment. Apparently, the new Democrat action when all else fails, impeachment here with 61 Dems and 60 Crony-Republicans is ripe with illegitimacy. Thanks and best regards - (WrH)
A month or so ago, I remember seeing an article that said personal credit card debt had reached one trillion dollars for the first time, to say that I was thunder struck would be an understatement! I run a small business and the first thing that came to mind was the amount of interest that was entailed in so much debt and how in the world can people manage? Bingo, “ hey, if the government can do it, maybe I can do it too.” Guess they didn’t realize that the feds use fantasy economics, you know like a reduction in the rate of budgetary increase is a “budget cut”. But then the pesky real world butts in and, guess what, ya gotta service the debt. As one commenter mentioned, you cannot ignore the laws of economics, the real kind, not the fantasy kind.
I’d like to throw out for this group a way to think about treasuries, especially the 10 year. I propose they are storage boxes for large amounts of USDs. Like China. Where is a safe place to store USDs? What do you do with them? I think that is the purpose they serve - they are not “investments”. No one buys them for that purpose. They at least nominally enjoy the full faith and credit of the US Government, backed by its ability to tax. They are (or at least have) served as solid collateral for loans. Safety of the principal is the goal, the interest is the bonus. Hence their desirability. As long as USDs are used for trade (huge) people need a safe place to store their USDs. If interest rates go up on Treasuries, the demand is even more, not less.
Mark, I think at least California and maybe some other states have delayed tax filing dates due to “heavy rains”. I kid you not. Anyway that would explain part of the spike interest payments to taxes.
Note in the graph debt to GDP is coming down. After WWII we had similar debt/GDP ratios and a burst of very high inflation which brought the ratio down in a couple of years.
Perfect summary. Just one thing left out. In 1929 there were many innovative technologies, business was booming, debt was low and we had gold in Fort Knox. 2023 and the economy is lousy, public and private debt are at all-time highs, people aren't working and stocks are in the stratosphere. There is an old saying. "Trees don't grow to the sky." What can't go on won't go on.
Seems the Biden Administration is playing lots of games with draining the strategic oil reserve and massaging any numbers they can, later revising them after they get the needed headline.
Lee Smith made the point how the Obama Administration politicized the press Corp even more. Either go with the narrative, or your cut off from getting interviews.
I was wondering when someone, anyone, would write an article about how much more it was going to cost the federal government to borrow money now that interest rates were rising. The free ride is over. While the politicians and news media try to scare people about the effects of a national default, the future holds another real dilemma fast approaching where just paying the interest on the debt is going to inevitably reduce budgets and borrowing by the government. As Victor Davis Hanson wrote in a column recently - not about this topic - but it fits: What can't go on won't go on.
Current insane borrowing levels only make sense if one accepts the theory of a financial system reset at some point in the future. I was a tad sceptical in 2020 when I first saw this: 'The virus was brought in for the vaccine. The vaccine was brought in for the vaccine passport. The vaccine passport was brought in for digital id. Digital id was brought in for CBDCs' ...
But now, with borrowing in the trillions it's the only thing that makes sense. They are playing with Monopoly money at this stage and the only reason they haven't reset yet is because enough of us resisted the shot as to make it unworkable at the present moment.
Overlooked is that before our descendants saddling of this debt is the destruction and elimination of Savers funds. A huge source of money exists both within Gov't tax-advantaged IRAs, 401ks & etc. accounts as well as after-tax investment accounts that we rely on to live.
Social Security flailing and failing? Yeah, 50 years in the work force paying into it matters little with lay-abouts and illegal immigrants drawing benefits from the already failing pyramid scheme. It was in trouble long ago which is why I saved as much of my own income as possible all along... (Silly me! Self-reliability is so, so MAGA or something).
Inflation? Why, "incomes have risen almost to match"! Except while investment income is only rising as of late (with recent interest rate increases), risk-averse investment values are falling or have fallen already. I gave my wife and I a raise to compensate for inflation - from our already reduced 'nest-egg'. What folks such as me are confronting is in addition to reducing our living standards to maintain, we're facing finance-fund exhaustion at the tail-end of our planning. That is, from maybe leaving a few bucks for our kids/grandkids we'll need to cease living ahead of schedule (sorry, flip-humor there. It's laugh or else cry I'm afraid). Best to all of Mark's Readers (and to you, too, Mark)! (WrH)
While the Debt-Beat goes on... (Poor Sonny & Cher joke attempt!) Maybe when we're much older our lost memory will salve the pain of being broke... no "I remember eatin' a steak!" moments. Best at you RNo! (WrH)
2 cents: never too far from something bad, never too far from something good. I hear said that our National debt is so large it cannot be paid off, that our productive vitality got given to someone foreign. I say nutz to that. America plays large, mistakes can be huge, and we adapt anew. Under Clinton we had surpluses, and %debt service of GDP fell rapidemento. Useful productivity, besides individual striving, is in part cultural. The US population is if anything post-covid even more wound for change and creation. The manufacturing, agricultural, & invention capability vast. Add in blessed with great resources for most anything, I am of the belief we peeps will be okay. The US gov'ts, well, there's your problem. Taking $ for mischief away from our law-makers due to debt servicing helps slow the Leviathan
"The US gov'ts, well, there's your problem." And this time it may be insurmountable. After decades of economic decline, incompetence and corruption we got Trump, and he comes off totally unappreciated. He may have run deficits, but it was to get the economy rolling and give us a military that would have kept control over Afghanistan and prevented the Ukraine mess. Our politicians in Washington perceived him as a threat and in getting rid of him threw out the baby with the bath water, as the saying goes. Now it is not even clear that we have a rule of law and a system that would allow the installation of dedicated civil servants and get us the level playing field necessary to rebuild this country and make us solvent.
Dear Perle - I am so with your commentary, especially the "unappreciated" part. I too don't see proper justice but a tilted playing field: truly lousy juncture, requiring firm accountability to properly learn from. I can't see the path to that proper land myself, but I see the melting pot and root common-sense of Americans as a bulwark against evil. The systems - media/political/financial (but I repeat myself) - are going to bust, I just don't think we will. Looking at my kids friends, my confidence only goes up.
I might as well continue to plan to work through my 60’s and 70’s. (Not very hard though).
Just like they accomplished here in Illinois.
What is the deal with so-called "Republicans" and their chosen from amongst themselves Speakers ??? Kev is a moron and Dade down here in Texas is an imbecile !!! It is way past time for a House cleaning, you know what I'm saying, that's right folks, stop voting for incumbents in the primaries, STOP DOING THAT ALREADY !!!
What’s the story with republicans in Texas impeaching their republican attorney general? With all of the infighting it won’t be long before the Dems turn the place blue
The impeachment of AG Paxton is just exactly the sort of thing which occurs when the swamp critters don't get their way in an election. Paxton has had some sort of federal securities law violation hanging over his head for both of his prior terms as AG. I personally voted for Louie Gohmert in the primary last time. The powers that be pushed George P. Bush or Eva Guzman, FAIL! But they got most of the swampy jerks that they wanted in the Legislature.
For those who are interested, more detail re. AG Paxton and the swamp:
https://texasscorecard.com/commentary/analysis-crony-establishment-will-veto-your-vote/
Thanks SCT! That is a bookmark site for sure! I have written my State Rep (from Cleburne, TX) who is supposed to be a conservative who voted for the impeachment and have expressed my disappointment and have sent him a link to the article.
Well said DTLB; and proper action. It's not just information that's required, but understanding. The TSC website presents facts not just accusations helping one to understand. Go Texas! (From Idaho...) Best to you! (WrH)
SC Texan, I truly appreciate that link. It's info was not shared in reporting I've seen and heard on AG Paxton's impeachment. Apparently, the new Democrat action when all else fails, impeachment here with 61 Dems and 60 Crony-Republicans is ripe with illegitimacy. Thanks and best regards - (WrH)
I’ll tell you a little secret ….. Dems won’t have to turn TX blue - the republicans gonna do it for them. Shhhhh don’t tell anyone. 🙄
A month or so ago, I remember seeing an article that said personal credit card debt had reached one trillion dollars for the first time, to say that I was thunder struck would be an understatement! I run a small business and the first thing that came to mind was the amount of interest that was entailed in so much debt and how in the world can people manage? Bingo, “ hey, if the government can do it, maybe I can do it too.” Guess they didn’t realize that the feds use fantasy economics, you know like a reduction in the rate of budgetary increase is a “budget cut”. But then the pesky real world butts in and, guess what, ya gotta service the debt. As one commenter mentioned, you cannot ignore the laws of economics, the real kind, not the fantasy kind.
I’d like to throw out for this group a way to think about treasuries, especially the 10 year. I propose they are storage boxes for large amounts of USDs. Like China. Where is a safe place to store USDs? What do you do with them? I think that is the purpose they serve - they are not “investments”. No one buys them for that purpose. They at least nominally enjoy the full faith and credit of the US Government, backed by its ability to tax. They are (or at least have) served as solid collateral for loans. Safety of the principal is the goal, the interest is the bonus. Hence their desirability. As long as USDs are used for trade (huge) people need a safe place to store their USDs. If interest rates go up on Treasuries, the demand is even more, not less.
Mark, I think at least California and maybe some other states have delayed tax filing dates due to “heavy rains”. I kid you not. Anyway that would explain part of the spike interest payments to taxes.
Note in the graph debt to GDP is coming down. After WWII we had similar debt/GDP ratios and a burst of very high inflation which brought the ratio down in a couple of years.
Economic laws cannot be avoided forever. Maybe this is the “debt spiral” they’ve always told us would come.
Perfect summary. Just one thing left out. In 1929 there were many innovative technologies, business was booming, debt was low and we had gold in Fort Knox. 2023 and the economy is lousy, public and private debt are at all-time highs, people aren't working and stocks are in the stratosphere. There is an old saying. "Trees don't grow to the sky." What can't go on won't go on.
Stein's Law: If something can't go on forever, then at some point, it will stop.
Alternate data:
http://www.shadowstats.com/alternate_data
Seems the Biden Administration is playing lots of games with draining the strategic oil reserve and massaging any numbers they can, later revising them after they get the needed headline.
Lee Smith made the point how the Obama Administration politicized the press Corp even more. Either go with the narrative, or your cut off from getting interviews.
https://leesmith.locals.com/post/4073528/how-the-us-ruling-class-plot-against-trump-woke-a-sleeping-american-giant
I was wondering when someone, anyone, would write an article about how much more it was going to cost the federal government to borrow money now that interest rates were rising. The free ride is over. While the politicians and news media try to scare people about the effects of a national default, the future holds another real dilemma fast approaching where just paying the interest on the debt is going to inevitably reduce budgets and borrowing by the government. As Victor Davis Hanson wrote in a column recently - not about this topic - but it fits: What can't go on won't go on.
Debt is that which is done to us, by others, to our ultimate detriment. And we don't even receive a "thank you" . . .
As you said, "The government will do all the wrong things." If only they restrict their actions to bandaids!
And how will this affect tax revenue? It sounds negative to me.
Current insane borrowing levels only make sense if one accepts the theory of a financial system reset at some point in the future. I was a tad sceptical in 2020 when I first saw this: 'The virus was brought in for the vaccine. The vaccine was brought in for the vaccine passport. The vaccine passport was brought in for digital id. Digital id was brought in for CBDCs' ...
But now, with borrowing in the trillions it's the only thing that makes sense. They are playing with Monopoly money at this stage and the only reason they haven't reset yet is because enough of us resisted the shot as to make it unworkable at the present moment.
Yep.
Overlooked is that before our descendants saddling of this debt is the destruction and elimination of Savers funds. A huge source of money exists both within Gov't tax-advantaged IRAs, 401ks & etc. accounts as well as after-tax investment accounts that we rely on to live.
Social Security flailing and failing? Yeah, 50 years in the work force paying into it matters little with lay-abouts and illegal immigrants drawing benefits from the already failing pyramid scheme. It was in trouble long ago which is why I saved as much of my own income as possible all along... (Silly me! Self-reliability is so, so MAGA or something).
Inflation? Why, "incomes have risen almost to match"! Except while investment income is only rising as of late (with recent interest rate increases), risk-averse investment values are falling or have fallen already. I gave my wife and I a raise to compensate for inflation - from our already reduced 'nest-egg'. What folks such as me are confronting is in addition to reducing our living standards to maintain, we're facing finance-fund exhaustion at the tail-end of our planning. That is, from maybe leaving a few bucks for our kids/grandkids we'll need to cease living ahead of schedule (sorry, flip-humor there. It's laugh or else cry I'm afraid). Best to all of Mark's Readers (and to you, too, Mark)! (WrH)
While the Debt-Beat goes on... (Poor Sonny & Cher joke attempt!) Maybe when we're much older our lost memory will salve the pain of being broke... no "I remember eatin' a steak!" moments. Best at you RNo! (WrH)