Why I'm an economic pessimist.

[RandomGuy]

You're correct. Read the report I know you'll appreciate it.

It is an interesting report. "Current fiscal policy unsustainalbe".

I also like the interesting bit that in order to close the revenue gap to cover the deficits that we have been running it would require double-digit growth for 75 years.

This is a DIRECT rebuff to the Reaganomics crowd. Gotta love the GAO.

[RandomGuy]

You don't have to be a home-owner to be affected by the tightening in the mortgage market and higher interest rates, because there are millions of home-owners who will be affected none-the-less. They won't be able to afford those luxury vehicles on credit, they won't be able to keep running up the value of their homes and cashing out the equity to pay off those high-interest credit cards. Like GM and Ford, American businesses will have no choice but to contract, and the downsizing will feed among itself.

Exactly. I don't plan on owning a home anytime in the near future, but I do know that it WILL affect me on some level.

[2centsworth]

It is an interesting report. "Current fiscal policy unsustainalbe".

I also like the interesting bit that in order to close the revenue gap to cover the deficits that we have been running it would require double-digit growth for 75 years.

This is a DIRECT rebuff to the Reaganomics crowd. Gotta love the GAO.

Their you go, politicize it so we'll continue on the same path of arguing over nothing.

No matter you political persuasion the problem is SPENDING, not that we don't raise enough to spend, of the Economy isn't growing fast enough to spend. IT's as simple as we need to insist that all politicians CUT SPENDING. It'll never happen so that's why I'm a pessimist.

[RandomGuy]

Their you go, politicize it so we'll continue on the same path of arguing over nothing.

No matter you political persuasion the problem is SPENDING, not that we don't raise enough to spend, of the Economy isn't growing fast enough to spend. IT's as simple as we need to insist that all politicians CUT SPENDING. It'll never happen so that's why I'm a pessimist.

I wouldn't call it "arguing over nothing" to try and dispell the irrational belief in running massive deficit spending to rack up a massive overall debt with the insane belief that the economy will grow faster than it ever has for a sustained period of time to be able to pay back that debt.

I am not quite so cynical as to believe that the people in the middle whose opinions and votes matter the most can't be educated about sound fiscal policy. Cutting spending will have to happen, there is no other option. But as the current administration and congress demonstrate, a lack of vision is costly.

One can only hope that someone will step forward with something resembling a plan. It happens.