The Debt Isn't Our Biggest Problem

The federal debt is approximately $16.3 trillion.  That sounds very bad, and many politicians say that America is on the road to becoming the next Greece.  However, let’s put things in perspective.  The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that our debt will be about 73% of GDP by the end of 2012. (CBO, The 2012 Long-Term Budget Outlook.)  The CIA World Fact Book (the spooks study everything, and they even publish some of it) puts the U.S 38^th in the world in the order of debt owed vs. GDP.  (CIA World Fact Book, Country Comparison: 2011 Public Debt)  To be sure, there are nations ahead of us that are in dire straits, such as Greece, with 165% debt, and Portugal with 108% debt.  However, there are also nations ahead of us with AAA credit ratings, such as Germany, which, despite 85% debt,  has a very strong economy, the UK (England), with 85% debt,  and Canada,  with 87% debt.

Conservatives have been harping on the debt issue since the Tea Party came to power.  They say that we’re mortgaging our childrens’ future; they want to cut everything except defense.  (As an aside, I find it quite ironic that conservatives interpret the Constitution literally, but ignore the fact that the Founding Fathers didn't want to have a standing army.)  I would say that THEY, the conservatives, are hurting our competitiveness and risking our childrens’ future by cutting funding for things that invest in our future, such as education.

In 1944 America was at the height of World War 2.  The Federal Debt was at 96% of GDP, and skyrocketing due to war costs (the debt reached 113% in 1945).  Did Congress vote to cut everything but defense spending?  No!  They passed the G.I. bill, which gave returning veterans money for education and living expenses so that they could attend college or trade school.   Millions of veterans took advantage of the education benefits of the G.I. bill.  That education gave America a skilled workforce second to none, and it was a significant part of the American renaissance of the 50’s and 60’s.

The Federal Debt is a big problem, but we can’t save ourselves out of debt.  We need to invest in our future so that we can grow our economy and help our children reach their potential.