Monday, July 11, 2011

The Unspoken Issue in the Debt Limit Debate



By Bill Wilson


Often times, someone outside the family is better able to define a problem or the real issues in a conflict than those in the middle of the dispute. So it is that Jeremy Warner of London’s Daily Telegraph put his finger squarely on the real, underlying nature of the blood-fest surrounding the proposed increase in the national debt ceiling.



In an column published June 30, Warner goes through all the conventional discussion points about the nature of fight — Republicans want cuts, Democrats want taxes – as well as predictable establishment talking points on the impact of a refusal on the part of Congress to increase Uncle Sam’s credit limit.



But at the end of his piece, Warner puts his finger on the fundamental issue like none in the U.S. have. Warner writes, “Americans cannot have a European-style welfare state, a modern infrastructure and a defence budget equating to 4.5 percent of GDP unless they are prepared to pay for it.” Right he is.



The time for wanting everything but paying for it with borrowed money is soon over. The end of the line will come when either the American people make basic changes to the “what” we want to pay for or the markets finally sober up and realize U.S. debt is spiraling out of control and cannot be paid back. Either way, the days of spend ‘til you drop and put it all on the credit card are done.



Get full story here.



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