E-Newsletter No. 10
October 2014
If not us, who?________If not now, when?
As we have noted on our website, our Foundation supports the efforts of the Campaign to Fix the Debt. We have provided a link on our Home Page to the Campaign’s website, and we encourage all citizens to digitally sign the Petition to Fix the Debt. The Campaign has recently published a two-page summary about the Debt Threat, along with another paper that lists some of the Common Myths about the US Debt. There are several reasons why it has become critically important that our elected officials begin to fix this growing problem.
Ever-growing levels of debt threaten citizens’ and families’ economic well-being in a number of ways –
Lower Wages and Fewer Job Opportunities – As the government continues to issue more and more debt, this debt “crowds out” productive investments in people, machinery, technology and new ventures.
Growing national debt can drive up interest rates throughout the economy, leading to higher interest payments on mortgages, car loans, student loans, and credit card debt.
Interest will represent the fastest growing part of the federal budget. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office projects that interest costs will nearly quadruple from about $220 billion in 2013 to almost $880 billion in 2024. As more of our budget goes to financing today’s spending and yesterday’s promises, spending targeted toward the next generation will continue to dwindle.
A Threatened Social Safety Net – By 2033, the combined Social Security trust funds are expected to run out of money, at which point all beneficiaries will receive an immediate cut in benefits.
An Increased Likelihood of a Fiscal Crisis – Failure to get the national debt under control could precipitate a crisis… International examples suggest there could be large investment losses, tanking markets, sharply rising interest rates, mass unemployment, rapid inflation, and/or devastating austerity, causing sharp drops in public investment.
Some of the common myths about the growing debt problem include –
The amount of the annual deficit is falling, and therefore, debt is no longer a concern.
There is no harm in waiting to solve our debt problems.
As our country’s citizens prepare to head to the polls next month, we encourage you to download these publications from the Campaign’s website and share them with your family and friends –
The Debt Threat
http://www.fixthedebt.org/uploads/files/national%20debt%20and%20you%20final.pdf
Common Myths About the Debt
http://www.fixthedebt.org/uploads/files/Debt%20myths%20and%20facts%20final.pdf
And we encourage you to support those candidates who are campaigning to solve our country’s growing debt problem, who are more concerned about the country’s future (rather than their own future re-election chances), and who are committed to Fix the Debt, rather than push this growing problem onto future generations.
US Debt Clock – – September 1st – $55,528 per citizen / October 1st – $55,812