How did we make heaven into hell?

The United States has: coal, oil, gas, iron ore, farmland, gold, uranium, a kind neighbor to the north with abundant resources, and a fairly hard working intelligent population.

So how did we end up with a 31.5 trillion dollar debt?

How is that possible?

 

Spending is popular. Taxes are not. Wars don't help either, though, that's true.

 

Oops, my thread changed it's nature as I wrote it, so I had not researched the
point I made in the opinion poll, which was about our enormous debt.

You are correct, about 1/3 of the debt is money held by the public
which if the tax rate was higher, or more intelligently applied, would not exist.

About 1/4 of the debt is held by other countries and I'm guessing would not exist if we
weren't neoliberal and bought so much from other countries of things we used to make ourselves.

A lot of the money that goes on wars is building up weapons and personnel before we go to war.
The US military budget is about 900 Billion dollars per year at present,
and the amount of weapons shipped to Ukraine so far has been somewhere around 130 Billion dollars.
So a lot of the money goes on wars we are hoping to have, not just on the ones we actually have.

 

Ask yourself how over 50% of Americans became totally dependent on welfare, subsidies, and unearned handouts from the government, and then you'll have the answer to all similar questions relating to how we turned into a huge pile of worthless **** during the past 20 years.

 

Higher taxes will not fix the spending problem. Addressing the spending problem is only thing that can fix the spending problem. The amount of money the Republicans, but most especially the progressive Democrats, advocate spending is far higher than the private sector can provide. In fact if you keep increasing taxes, you will crush the private sector, which will make things worse.

 

Yes, I saw this trend developing during the late 1970s under the Carter administration. "Let's put the middle class on welfare," the Carter people said (And buy their votes). Fortunately they were defeated in 1980 which delayed the problem. Then along came George W. Bush who was socialist light and Obama who was socialist heavy. Now we have Biden. You can say that he has lost his mind, but he never had much of brain and has now lost what little he had.

 

I think the people who voted for him should bear some of the blame.

 

We allowed our country to become a welfare state for the rich and the poor. The middle class has to fend for themselves.

 

Well put! The super-wealthy have the politicians in their pockets, and a fraudulent tax code that gives them every opportunity to avoid paying a really FAIR share. The poor? They've got a whole laundry list of welfare and subsidy programs to make sure they never have to earn their way in life.

 

It’s both. And both parties want to spend too much. Democrats are just better about raising taxes to pay the bills.

 

Sounds just like UK then.

 

the US is NOT hell, unless one listens to RW media, then heaven help you

 

In the UK you can fake a back injury that can't be disproved and get a free house and car. Millions do it. This is why ppl are drowning in the sea with inflatables trying to get here.

 

We ended up with a 31.5 trillion dollar debt because people with money find US debt a good investment. That is a good thing.

The federal debt isn't as big a problem as they try to make it out to be. It is not ANYTHING like an individuals household debt.

 

Read today's headlines about how Americans have racked up a record-high trillion dollars in credit card debt at the same time they are bleeding out their 401k's and IRA's. Then remember that we're approaching a national debt of $31.5 trillion dollars, and very large numbers of Americans are crying that they just can't make it unless they continue to get all the unearned free stuff they can lay their hands on, and WANT MORE! Highway to Hell?

 

learn how to be gratefull

 

We aren't in debt because people get free stuff.

 

These sorts of discussions leaves out the all important 'personal responsibility'. People living way beyond their means trying to project an image of success, then blaming 'the system' for not being fair.

 

Personal responsibility isn't anything useful.

People aren't going to take responsibility. it's never going to happen. It is a waste of time to even discuss. We can only control our own actions. Telling other people to take responsibility for themselves may as well be a cop out.

If we want solutions, we have to start somewhere else.

 

I completely agree with you - it is futile. But it cannot be discounted. We have become a society blaming others for our own situations.

 

We have to change the systems and structures that have led to this, not blame the results of those systems as a way of defending the structures that got us here.

 

Again, I'm in complete agreement. We cannot fix the problem without addressing the systems and structures that cause it in the first place. My point is not about the root of the problem, but more about how people don't help themselves.

 

I think that Pants is right about personal responsibility. The solution for those who refuse to take responsibility is generally that they reap what they sow.

 

Tell that to the Sackler family.

 

It's just one big blame game atm