I heard this morning, on the latest set of international tests, for which I wasn't even aware there was such a test, though fully aware that there are standardized tests school children have always taken, both before and now after No Child Left Behind, but now aware that at least one of those standardized test is also taken throughout Europe and parts of Asia, and if I add another clause to this sentence I'll have to kill myself, that (you thought there would never be a "that", did you?...first time a life ring showed up as a relative pronoun) again American children are not competitive with much of the rest of the world in math and other cognitive skills. We finished 20 something out of thirty something, and lots of places kicked our butt, including, yes, Lichtenstein, Sweden, Finland, ok everyone in Europe except for, I think, Spain, and Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea and just about any place Asian. I think we beat Sardinia, Bosnia (though give them time), and now, of course, I'm just makin' up stuff, but you get my general point. How do we change this? Who gets the tough love? The kids, the teachers, the parents, the politicians? Can we all agree someone needs the tough love? This makes me about as nervous (not quite, but about) as our recent (over the last 7+ years) $5.5 trillion dollar deferred tax increase the Bush Administration and Congress have seen fit to vote for. Now - different topic, but I said these thoughts were random, and I want to maintain some credibility - in truth, that same President and Congress gave us a 2 trillion dollar tax cut (writing the word "trillion" always scares me). So, let's see, correcting myself, the net tax increase, for which we can thank the President and the Congress, is a $3.5 tr-tr-trillion dollar tax increase, and counting, of course, since this particular whopping tax increase, distinctly different from the more honest, non-deferred, publicly shared, sanctioned and approved kind, comes with interest!...making this tax increase, just like our mortgages or cars, more expensive the more slowly we choose or are able to pay it off.
Oh, does someone think I'm mislabeling what you now see that I'm talking about, i.e. the net difference between the increase in the national debt during the Bush administration (from 3.5 to over 9 trillion, i.e. about 5.5 trillion) and the Bush tax cuts?
No, no, no, no. We are America. We are not Columbia, Nicaragua, Mexico. We do not default, and we do not get debt forgiveness. No, no. We pay back every bloody dollar. Just like you do. That credit card balance you have, which I hope is not too, too bad. You WILL pay it. And America WILL pay back that $9 trillion, including the $5.5 trillion (and counting, or I should say, accruing) added during this administration.
So you say, "But that's not a tax increase, dude! That borrowing. That's a loan." Right. Well, what does the U.S. government use to pay back its debts, or to pay for anything for that matter? Tax revenues. Ok, we agree on that. Well, just like you and your credit cards, if you ramp them way up, at the point where you decide you want to start ramping them down and paying them off, are you allowed, in the midst of and to offset somewhat those higher payments you are choosing to make on your credit cards, to pay less for your other daily, weekly, monthly obligations? If you are going to pay $500 more per month against your credit cards, can you pay $500 less per month on food, tuition, insurance, mortgage? No, no, no, no. You cannot. You can trim your sails some, can't you. AH! But that's painful, isn't it? It's a sacrifice. You feel that. But you have another option. You can get another job and bring in more money.
Those are the same two options the U.S. government has and will have in paying off the $3.5 trillion in net tax increase given to us mostly against our will, but certainly without sufficient protest on our parts, by Bush and the Congress. You're saying, "There he goes again." Still don't believe me, huh? Well, back to our two options. For government, trimming sails means not federally funding something that previously was being federally funded. So, at least I hope you will accept the nomenclature that Bush and the Congress implemented "pain to someone" down the road, when we decide we wish to begin paying off this debt. But that's just the first choice, and if you live in this country and follow your government at all you know how historically difficult that is to accomplish, that is, for politicians to vote for, not DEFERRED pain, which they have proven very disturbingly capable at voting for, but direct and immediate pain. The second choice is to make more money. Now, please, everyone say with me, "TAX...INCREASE!" Because that's the only way the government gives itself a raise.
Oops, there is one more third way, we could "grow our way" out of debt. Well let's wake up to the globalized new world of a modern India and China. That ain't happenin'! The great American century growth-wise was the 20th, when we had no such competition. I'm not being negative on the potential for America to compete. I'm just saying now she really does have to compete. The opponent may lose 6-2, 6-2, but the difference now is that at least there is someone over there returning serve, and doing it increasingly well. If you think in the next 10 years that match score is more likely to become 6-1, 6-1 instead of 6-3, 6-4 then you underestimate how desperately China and India want to become developed, advanced countries and economies competitive on the international scene. I will say this politely, but owing to my Sicilian lineage, "Fagetaboudit."
So, my total count of random thoughts was only two. I'll try to be more random next time. But that [gulp] $3.5 trillion dollar difference between the Bush tax cuts and the increase to the national debt over the term of the Bush administration is most likely - since I don't think we will grow our way out, and since cuts to government programs have been historically very hard, cuts anywhere near the required magnitude, at least, and here again I have to stop with the clauses before I go right over a cliff - to be a walloping $3.5 trillion dollar tax increase...at some point...and increasing with interest until that point arrives, making it a size 3.5 trillion shoe waiting to drop, and which most certainly will, and we will pay for when it does, because we are America, and we don't go barefoot.
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