In response to those who have contacted me regarding my alleged write-in campaign against John Kline, I am not waging a write-in campaign against the Congressman. I do not live in his district so I cannot even vote for him. My previous post in response to "Why Kline Voted Yes" on the bailout bill has caused an inadvertant error in the blogosphere. There is another guy running a write in campaign against Kline, and it was mistakenly attributed to me because of my post.
While I seriously disagree with the Congressman on this particular issue - he has been a stellar conservative on other issues like opposing earmarks and opening up domestic drilling. If I lived in his district, he would still have my vote.
For those who came here to see the "goods" on the Congressman and why I would wage a write-in campaign against him, I'm sorry to disappoint.
As for a future Congressional bid in Minnesota's 4th Congressional District, I won't rule that out in the future. No write-in this year - Ed Matthews has my vote!
Jeffrey S. Williams
National Debtbusters
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Monday, October 13, 2008
Debtor Nation
Look at the graph to the right. I find it quite peculiar that the Personal debt (in trillions) equals the size of the National Debt. Food for thought.
Debtor Nation
The graphic to the right, from a column on the debt that is crushing the middle class in today's Detroit Free-Press, pretty much says it all.
Over the past few weeks as the economic crisis has come into hideous focus, we've spent a lot of time blaming Wall Street executives and a lot of time blaming Congress, both deservedly so.
One area we haven't spent enough time focusing on is the millions of Americans who helped get us into this mess by taking on more debt than they could afford. There are many sad and tragic stories among this group, of course, and while we don't want to dismiss or denigrate them, it's fair to point out they represent only a small portion of those who've gotten into trouble by overextending themselves financially.
More important still is to recognize the millions upon millions of Americans who've managed their finances prudently, lived within their means, and continued to make payments on time even as they are saddled with the burden of bailing out those who did not.
Credit card companies and other businesses will always be there to ply us with sweet nothings about low interest loans and the like. Too often over the last twenty years, however, it seems more and more Americans have fallen victim to that siren song and rejected the truism which our fathers, grandfathers, and even Founding Fathers lived by: there's no such thing as a free lunch.
At its core, then, this is a story about individual freedom and individual choices. Nobody put a gun to the head of the 28 year-old University of Michigan graduate in the Detroit Free-Press story and forced him to buy a house with a $150,000 mortgage - any more than someone forced his fiancee to ring up $15,000 in credit card debt.
The most nauseating part of this debacle is that the United States government - which long ago perfected the habit of living beyond its means - was an active participant in helping some Americans shed the inhibition of fiscal prudence and embrace the notion we can afford it all - even when we know we can't.
The true irony, of course, is that because some Americans exercised their individual freedoms irresponsibly in the last decade we've now all become less free, assuming you measure such things by the number of additional taxpayer dollars committed to Washington's coffers ($700+ billion) and by unprecedented expansion of the U.S. government into what was previously considered the "private sector."
Debtor Nation Posted by TOM BEVAN
The graphic to the right, from a column on the debt that is crushing the middle class in today's Detroit Free-Press, pretty much says it all.
Over the past few weeks as the economic crisis has come into hideous focus, we've spent a lot of time blaming Wall Street executives and a lot of time blaming Congress, both deservedly so.
One area we haven't spent enough time focusing on is the millions of Americans who helped get us into this mess by taking on more debt than they could afford. There are many sad and tragic stories among this group, of course, and while we don't want to dismiss or denigrate them, it's fair to point out they represent only a small portion of those who've gotten into trouble by overextending themselves financially.
More important still is to recognize the millions upon millions of Americans who've managed their finances prudently, lived within their means, and continued to make payments on time even as they are saddled with the burden of bailing out those who did not.
Credit card companies and other businesses will always be there to ply us with sweet nothings about low interest loans and the like. Too often over the last twenty years, however, it seems more and more Americans have fallen victim to that siren song and rejected the truism which our fathers, grandfathers, and even Founding Fathers lived by: there's no such thing as a free lunch.
At its core, then, this is a story about individual freedom and individual choices. Nobody put a gun to the head of the 28 year-old University of Michigan graduate in the Detroit Free-Press story and forced him to buy a house with a $150,000 mortgage - any more than someone forced his fiancee to ring up $15,000 in credit card debt.
The most nauseating part of this debacle is that the United States government - which long ago perfected the habit of living beyond its means - was an active participant in helping some Americans shed the inhibition of fiscal prudence and embrace the notion we can afford it all - even when we know we can't.
The true irony, of course, is that because some Americans exercised their individual freedoms irresponsibly in the last decade we've now all become less free, assuming you measure such things by the number of additional taxpayer dollars committed to Washington's coffers ($700+ billion) and by unprecedented expansion of the U.S. government into what was previously considered the "private sector."
A Historical Perspective
click on the graph for larger view
If you look at the debt level through Eisenhower and after Eisenhower, you will see the influence of John Maynard Keynes "General Theory" on the policies of U.S. Presidents, Senators and Congressmen. It comes as no surprise that the debt started rising during the Kennedy Administration, as he was the first President known to have embraced the "General Theory." It was Richard Nixon who once declared "We're all Keynesian's now." As Congress approves more and more spending, and Presidents sign the spending bills, it is no wonder we are in the mess we're in.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
How fast is it growing?
How fast is it growing?
In 9 days, the debt increased by $241,657,749,631.13
This shows an average daily rate of $26,850,861,070.13.
At the current rate, the debt would balloon to an increase of $9,800,564,290,597.45 - essentially doubling the current debt.
And the politicians in Washington want to spend more of your hard earned dollars.
In 9 days, the debt increased by $241,657,749,631.13
This shows an average daily rate of $26,850,861,070.13.
At the current rate, the debt would balloon to an increase of $9,800,564,290,597.45 - essentially doubling the current debt.
And the politicians in Washington want to spend more of your hard earned dollars.
Newest National Debt Statistics Posted - Sept 08 - end of Fiscal Year 2008
From www.TreasuryDirect.gov
Debt Held By Public (Oct. 9, 2008) - $5,994,929,606,697.25
Intragovernmental Holdings - $4,271,453,039,846.37
Total Debt (Oct. 9, 2008) $10,266,382,646,543.62
Interest payment (September 2008): $19,883,186,641.26
Interest payment (Fiscal Year 2008): $451,154,049,950.63
Gifts to reduce the public debt (August 2008): $83,570.84
Gift to reduce the public debt (FY 08 To Date): $2,146,846.54
Debt Held By Public (Oct. 9, 2008) - $5,994,929,606,697.25
Intragovernmental Holdings - $4,271,453,039,846.37
Total Debt (Oct. 9, 2008) $10,266,382,646,543.62
Interest payment (September 2008): $19,883,186,641.26
Interest payment (Fiscal Year 2008): $451,154,049,950.63
Gifts to reduce the public debt (August 2008): $83,570.84
Gift to reduce the public debt (FY 08 To Date): $2,146,846.54
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