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Hey ras and fellow droolers, does this bother you at all?
Posted on: April 1, 2017 at 07:39:50 CT
GA Tiger MU
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The Runaway Entitlement Train
Debtor Nation: In its latest long-term budget outlook, the Congressional Budget Office warns that our budget is seriously out of whack and endangers our nation's future. While the report will likely be ignored in Washington by politicians who like spending your money, American taxpayers would be wise to heed its message.
The CBO has its issues as a prognosticator, especially when it comes to "scoring" congressional bills. But its long-term forecast for the budget is the equivalent of a horn sounding on a faraway train coming down the track: If you're on the track, you ignore the sound of that horn at your own peril.
In recent years, we have engaged in often-bitter political debates over what in budget terms is small change, without addressing the bigger issue that we've built an unsustainable mess of a budget.
The CBO's numbers are persuasive — and more than a little scary.
Right now, debt held by the public is about 77% of GDP. By 2047, if current trends hold, that will grow to 150% of GDP. Imagine having credit card debt more than 50% larger than your income. How would you pay it? That's where we'll be.
We're being driven toward a kind of national bankruptcy, in which tax revenues over the next 30 years will rise from 17.8% of the economy to roughly 19.6%, while spending will soar from about 20.7% of GDP to a shocking 29.4%, leaving massive budget deficits of nearly 10% of GDP and soaring debts that will be difficult for an aging population with a shrinking workforce to pay off.
From about $14 trillion now, our public debt would grow to over $90 trillion. Repeat: $90 trillion.
What's driving this budget insanity? Entitlements. Social Security, Medicare, Disability, and interest on our growing debt. Those things together will grow from roughly 12% of GDP this year to almost 22% of GDP in 2047.
So 75 cents of every dollar the government collects will go to those three programs. That doesn't leave much room for stuff like defense, infrastructure and all the other things government now does. And our national politics will turn into a long, vicious battle between those who get checks from the government, and those who don't. It won't be pretty.
Is that how our government should work?
As the CBO notes, if we wait even 10 years to address runaway spending, the tax increases or spending cuts required will have to be 50% larger than today to get the same results. As always seems to be the case, Congress has other, more-pressing priorities than entitlements right now. But the train's horn is blaring, and we're all sitting on the track. It's time to move.
Debtor Nation: In its latest long-term budget outlook, the Congressional Budget Office warns that our budget is seriously out of whack and endangers our nation's future. While the report will likely be ignored in Washington by politicians who like spending your money, American taxpayers would be wise to heed its message.
The CBO has its issues as a prognosticator, especially when it comes to "scoring" congressional bills. But its long-term forecast for the budget is the equivalent of a horn sounding on a faraway train coming down the track: If you're on the track, you ignore the sound of that horn at your own peril.
In recent years, we have engaged in often-bitter political debates over what in budget terms is small change, without addressing the bigger issue that we've built an unsustainable mess of a budget.
The CBO's numbers are persuasive — and more than a little scary.
Right now, debt held by the public is about 77% of GDP. By 2047, if current trends hold, that will grow to 150% of GDP. Imagine having credit card debt more than 50% larger than your income. How would you pay it? That's where we'll be.
We're being driven toward a kind of national bankruptcy, in which tax revenues over the next 30 years will rise from 17.8% of the economy to roughly 19.6%, while spending will soar from about 20.7% of GDP to a shocking 29.4%, leaving massive budget deficits of nearly 10% of GDP and soaring debts that will be difficult for an aging population with a shrinking workforce to pay off.
From about $14 trillion now, our public debt would grow to over $90 trillion. Repeat: $90 trillion.
What's driving this budget insanity? Entitlements. Social Security, Medicare, Disability, and interest on our growing debt. Those things together will grow from roughly 12% of GDP this year to almost 22% of GDP in 2047.
So 75 cents of every dollar the government collects will go to those three programs. That doesn't leave much room for stuff like defense, infrastructure and all the other things government now does. And our national politics will turn into a long, vicious battle between those who get checks from the government, and those who don't. It won't be pretty.
Is that how our government should work?
As the CBO notes, if we wait even 10 years to address runaway spending, the tax increases or spending cuts required will have to be 50% larger than today to get the same results. As always seems to be the case, Congress has other, more-pressing priorities than entitlements right now. But the train's horn is blaring, and we're all sitting on the track. It's time to move.
Please explain why this message is being reported.
MESSAGE THREAD
Hey ras and fellow droolers, does this bother you at all? - GA Tiger MU - 4/1 07:39:50