Since I have a little more time at the moment, I'd like to try to explain what this blog is going to be about. One thing that I follow closely is politics. I consider myself a libertarian-leaning independent. You'll notice that I used a small "l' in "libertarian." I used to actually be a member of the Libertarian Party, and I still primarily vote for the Libertarian candidate. But I'm no longer a member of the party because for a couple of reasons: 1) There are certain parts of the plank that I have a problem with, and 2) The party seems unwilling to bend on some of the smaller stuff such that they can actually win elections.
Since the big news lately is the financial mess we're in, I will try to address that. I'm absolutely against any bailout of the banks that are hurting. Don't get me wrong, a recession and a long-term decline of the stock market will hurt me too. It will hurt everyone. But adding another half billion to a trillion dollars to the national debt will hurt much worse.
Consider the report from David Walker, who was Comptroller General of the GAO when he released this report(pdf). This is a gloomy look at what our country faces if the federal spending does not get under control. Page 15 is a real eye-opener:
Since the big news lately is the financial mess we're in, I will try to address that. I'm absolutely against any bailout of the banks that are hurting. Don't get me wrong, a recession and a long-term decline of the stock market will hurt me too. It will hurt everyone. But adding another half billion to a trillion dollars to the national debt will hurt much worse.
Consider the report from David Walker, who was Comptroller General of the GAO when he released this report(pdf). This is a gloomy look at what our country faces if the federal spending does not get under control. Page 15 is a real eye-opener:
Current Fiscal Policy Is Unsustainable
•The "Status Quo"Is Not an Option
•We face large and growing structural deficits largely due to known demographic trends and rising health care costs.
•GAO’s simulations show that balancing the budget in 2040 could require actions as large as
•Cutting total federal spending by 60 percent or
Raising federal taxes to two times today's level
•Faster Economic Growth Can Help, but It Cannot Solve the Problem
•Closing the current long-term fiscal gap based on reasonable assumptions would require real average annual economic growth in the double-digit range every year for the next 75 years.
•During the 1990s, the economy grew at an average 3.2 percent per year.
•As a result, we cannot simply grow our way out of this problem. Tough choices will be required.
It's some scary stuff, and if our "leaders" are not addressing this issue then they are merely a waste of skin. I have contacted my representative and senators about not supporting a bailout. I have a feeling it will fall on deaf ears, and I'll excerpt their responses (if any) here.
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