article wrote:As the Treasury department has been warning -- and as House Republican leaders have promised -- the United States hit its debt limit Monday morning. The government can no longer meet its obligations by borrowing more money. And since incoming revenues aren't sufficient to pay for the services Congress has ordered and for interest payments on existing debt, the Treasury department is taking a series of ever-more extraordinary measures to pay all of its bills.
It can get away with this, according to Secretary Timothy Geithner, until August 2. If Congress doesn't lift the debt ceiling by then, the country will default, triggering a number of severe economic consequences.
It's like having your credit card denied. It's the only way to force certain types of over-spenders to cut back.
I remember arguing this would be a good thing back when Birdseye was around, maybe 6 or 7 years ago. Not that I think it's generally a good idea to run up against your credit limit, but for the US government, I think it's the only way we're going to see a reduction in spending. Aside from electing a lot of fiscal conservatives and libertarians, this is the only way to move to a smaller, more sustainable government.
Izchak says: 'slow down. Think clearly.' April Fools Day is the one day of the year that people critically evaluate news articles before accepting them as true.
But they just keep raising the limit so there is no real incentive to change their spending, unless the world stops buying into the program, but really, where are they going to go with their money if not here?
Maybe some token cut here or there will come from this since the freshman repub's are in play right now but I don't see them making real change unless they are threatened at re-election time in a big sweeping fashion. Too bad this isn't happening closer to election time.
If history is the indicator they will raise the limit until we crash rather than change their ways.
Lothar wrote:It's like having your credit card denied. It's the only way to force certain types of over-spenders to cut back.
Depends on what's at stake when the card gets denied. At a restaurant? Could be a nice wake-up call. Automatic mortgage payment? That could screw up your finances for a while.
Similar here, IMO. If it forces some adjustments and Congress can get it's collective head straight, this might be a good thing. On the other hand, if Congress gets mired in endless debate and doesn't manage to address it, it could cause some huge problems.
Not raising the debt ceiling will cause the United States Government to default on its loans, which would be a Very Bad Thing. I agree that spending is out of control, but nobody seems to have to political courage and willingness to address mandatory and discretionary spending across the board while also raising taxes. Any deficit reduction plan that does not include raising taxes is not a serious attempt.
Oh, heck no, the last thing the U.S. needs to do is default on loans.
Personally, I have no doubt they'll raise the debt ceiling again this year, if only to avoid default status. I'm referring more to my hope that it spurs some future bi-partisan work on the issue.
They will keep raising the debt ceiling until the Chinese stop loaning us money. When no one is willing to loan us money then the ★■◆● will really hit the fan.
In the meantime, though, the insinuation that we just shouldn't raise the debt ceiling this time is rather absurd. Sure, Congress, I'll bet you can get a comprehensive debt reduction plan passed in two months. No problem-o.
The problem is, if the government just keeps raising the debt ceiling in order to avoid defaulting on the loans, then what will EVER stop them from spending?
A broad-based, comprehensive reform of both spending and tax policies, which will take more than a month or two to achieve. Not that I have a whole lot of hope in the current Congress to pull something off like that, but it's a hell of a lot better than intentionally royally screwing ourselves.
But hey, ever think that you could solve the problem yourself? Here's your chance!
So what he's saying is, basically, "we have to raise the debt ceiling because we're spending too much"... and this is a convincing argument why?
Izchak says: 'slow down. Think clearly.' April Fools Day is the one day of the year that people critically evaluate news articles before accepting them as true.
Lothar wrote:So what he's saying is, basically, "we have to raise the debt ceiling because we're spending too much"... and this is a convincing argument why?
I never said it was convincing, I said it was fun.
. Or whore, which ever suits your views 
