Saturday, January 28, 2023

Whatever Happened To Fiscal Responsibility?

For most of us, when we make buying decisions, don't we first stop and ask, "Can we afford this?" We weigh the options, delay gratification sometimes, sharpen our pencils and decide accordingly.

Why does congress pass massive spending bills, then a few weeks later say that we don't have any money and "can we raise the debt ceiling?" I thought that debt ceilings were created as a means of keeping the government from spending like there's no tomorrow? Does anyone there give a moment's thought to the meaning of Fiscal Responsibility?


This is a story from a couple weeks ago:


https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/13/us-will-hit-its-debt-limit-thursday-start-taking-steps-to-avoid-default-yellen-warns-congress.html


Could this be why people play video games, watch TV, get wasted. The more you know, the more depressing it is. The more our government spends today on inefficient programs that do nothing to solve real world problems, the more concerned that we're going to be alive to see that dismal day when our Social Security benefits are cut, or eliminated.


Considering the fact that only half of the 10,000 Baby Boomers who turn 65 every day have savings and are relying wholly on government checks to survive, it's hard to imagine what will happen in about a dozen years.


This week I read that the end of Social Security could be as early as 2035. It had been 2037. It's not too difficult to see where this is all heading. The word "grim" comes to mind.


In case you missed it, here's my article about the Baby Boomer Death Clock.


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My apologies for not being more cheerful today. It may be due to the frequency of having had to blow my driveway this winter, or perhaps the fact that the rats are back in the goose barn. (I wish we could get rid of the rats in government. At least the ones in the barn can be poisoned.) 


At least the sun is out. That's a good thing. 

1 comment:

Richard Scott said...

It's the Social Security trust fund that might go bankrupt in 2035, not the program itself. As to what happened to fiscal responsibility, you already know the answer: We were on track to pay down the debt in 1998, but people kept voting for tax breaks for the wealthy and for crashing the economy. Decrease in revenue + stimulus spending to offset Republican incompetence = debt.

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