Monday, August 21, 2006

Diagnosis: Deficit Addiction

From TomPaine.com:
For the past few decades the federal government has been racking up massive amounts of debt without frightening away lenders thanks to a sterling reputation of debt repayment. Those days, however, may be gone as we stand at the precipice of the retirement of the Baby Boom Generation and our political leaders are increasingly unable to prepare for the impending crisis. Today, as yet another fiscally irresponsible and reckless session of Congress winds down, we find ourselves confronting a half-trillion dollar war (so far); a massive, multibillion dollar Gulf Coast rebuilding effort; a looming energy crisis; a $260 billion deficit and an $8.5 trillion national debt. But the real challenges lay ahead, toward the obligations to this nation's citizens, and the magnitude of the problem should give even the most reckless of congressional members pause.

----Isn't the deficit basically an example of intergenerational imperialism? Generations X, Y, and those beyond us are subject to taxation without representation.

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