Notice how we stack up against countries such as Greece, which is experiencing riots as a result of its austerity measures put into place to curb its economic downward spiral. This has been done in response to the demands of the EU, particularly Germany – the most powerful and still-solvent country of the economic alliance that controls the monetary systems of the various countries through the Euro. The other countries have been linked together under the acronym of PIIGS (Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece, Spain) as a brief collective word for the Euro economies in dire shape, with the French situation thrown in for good measure.
As for total national debt, news today predicts that we should blow past our current debt ceiling of $16.4 trillion before the election next November. Part of Obama’s budget deal was to put that safely past Election Day. He will have a lot of explaining to do on that note, whereas he expected to dodge that bullet for campaign season.
The Budget Committee also reveals that within the next ten years, per capita debt is expected to increase to $75,000. Incidentally, Obama’s own 2013 budget proposal has the national debt standing at $25 trillion by 2021.
In other news, Press Secretary Jay Carney is glad to trumpet how oil drilling is up for each year of the Obama administration, but answers questions of how some control can be put on the quickly upward spiraling gas prices by warning that changes put into effect now can take years. The administration can’t have it both ways: the oil output seen now is the result of changes put into place under the Bush administration. The increase in oil production is in spite of, not because of, efforts by Obama.
The Wall Street Journal takes Obama’s word that “the American people aren’t stupid”, and proceeds to explain how that is a problem for him. For example (to whet your appetite for an article that needs to be read in full):
The reality is that most of the increase in U.S. oil and gas production has come despite the Obama Administration. It is flowing from the shale boom, which is the result of private technological advances and investment. Mr. Obama has seen the energy sun rise and is crowing like a rooster that he made it happen.
Mr. Obama yesterday also repeated his proposal that now is the time to raise taxes on oil and gas companies, as if doing so will make them more likely to drill. He must not believe the economic truism that when you tax something you get less of it, including fewer of the new jobs they've created.
I certainly hope that Obama's claim that the American people aren't stupid holds true on Election Day next November.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments are welcome and discussion is open and encouraged. I expect that there will be some occasional disagreement (heaven knows why) or welcome clarification and embellishment, and such are freely solicited.
Consider that all such comments are in the public domain and are expected to be polite, even while contentious. I will delete comments which are ad hominem, as well as those needlessly profane beyond the realm of sputtering incredulity in reaction to some inanity, unless attributed to a quote.
Links to other sources are fine so long as they further the argument or expand on the discussion. All such comments and links are the responsibility of the commenter, and the mere presence herein does not necessarily constitute my agreement.
I will also delete all comments that link to a commercial site.