Unemployment

[kandrathe]

The idea is what, that the government needs to raise money? They can already borrow at absurdly good rates. Investors are scared, and would dearly love to buy more safe, gentle US government bonds.

Yes, the government needs to raise money. Borrowed money is not free money, it is merely deferred taxation. You can't just recoup 2008 through 2011's lost revenue all of a sudden. Why? Well, because they don't want to be forced to cut programs. They can't in good conscience raise taxes in the midst of a recession (which isn't stopping them from trying). So, their "Change" is on hold until the revenue stream exists to possibly support it. The progressives are the party of "You can have it all!" -- War in Afghanistan, Iraq, Iranian sanctions, Haiti relief, government run health care, Cap and tax, lower taxes for the middle class, social security, Medicare parts A, B, C and D, Medicaid, SChip, NASA, 24 months of unemployment benefits, etc. etc. etc.

So, what irony that under their tenure they would be the ones to be forced to admit that the gravy train stops here. Real change will occur once we re-rationalize all of our spending to the reality of our actual projected revenues over the next 20 years. Its not going to happen. They are already cooking the books to count revenues from bills they haven't even passed yet. The only thing more shocking than the current administration cutting social programs would be if they would opt to return to the gold standard.

Sorry, I think debt is the road to our ruin. Do you really want China bossing the US around the way the US bossed around Europe in 1917?