Topic: Responsible U.S. federal budgeting in 2016 & beyond
LTme's photo
Tue 06/30/15 05:59 AM
Context:
The U.S. top position in the world is slipping.
China's GDP exceeding our own is but one example.
India too is prospering, and before the end of the decade Japan may again ascend.
U.S. NATIONAL DEBT CLOCK

The Outstanding Public Debt as of 30 Jun 2015 at 12:28:15 PM GMT is:
$ 1 8 , 1 6 0 , 2 2 6 , 0 9 7 , 2 2 5 . 5 4

The estimated population of the United States is 320,885,664
so each citizen's share of this debt is $56,594.07.

bold emphasis Lm's

http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/

This stat. highlighted in bold is a per capita stat.
Factor out the young, the old, the imprisoned whose net worth is insufficient, and the cost per citizen who is actually in a position to pay may exceed $100K.

Do we really need NASA space adventures?
I'm not advocating technological troglodytism.
But my sources indicate we can accomplish pretty much the same thing with unmanned probes that we could with manned missions; but for about $one $tenth the price.

We spend a $Billion inventing Tang, and the whole world gets to drink it.
Why don't we let Russia, or China invent Tang the next time?

And how many aircraft carrier battle groups do we really need?
The U.S. is a NATO member nation.
If the U.S. is attacked, it is NATO's treaty obligation to come to our defense.

So why must the U.S. $spend more on $military, not only than any other NATO member nation; but more than all the ~27 other NATO member nations, COMBINED?!

Multiple issues here:

- What are our essential spending priorities?

- What spending can we / should we reduce or eliminate *?

And how can we stop being lied to about it?
"You and I as individuals can, by borrowing, live beyond our means, but for only a limited period of time. Why, then, should we think that collectively, as a nation, we are not bound by that same limitation?" Ronald Reagan's First Inaugural Address, 1981

Reagan talked a great game.
But Governor Reagan criticized President Carter for increasing the U.S. federal debt.
But President Reagan not only ran up more federal debt than the Democrat he criticized. Reagan ran up more U.S. federal debt than all the other U.S. presidents before him, COMBINED!

So what shall we do? A balanced budget amendment? (BBA)
A grass-roots campaign to elect Rand Paul?

What can U.S. citizens do as individuals, to fix this?

* Perfunctory and insignificant budget cuts or revenue enhancements won't suffice.
Balancing the budget would be nice; but even that's not enough; for we still have over $18 $Tril in $debt that should be paid off.

InvictusV's photo
Tue 06/30/15 05:33 PM
July 3, 2008

"The problem is, is that the way Bush has done it over the last eight years is to take out a credit card from the Bank of China in the name of our children, driving up our national debt from $5 trillion for the first 42 presidents - #43 added $4 trillion by his lonesome, so that we now have over $9 trillion of debt that we are going to have to pay back -- $30,000 for every man, woman and child. That's irresponsible. It's unpatriotic."

Candidate Obama.

http://www.americanthinker.com/video/2013/03/flashback_obama_calls_debt_under_bush_unpatriotic_and_irresponsible.html

March 19, 2012

National Debt has increased more under Obama than under Bush.

The National Debt has now increased more during President Obama's three years and two months in office than it did during 8 years of the George W. Bush presidency.

The Debt rose $4.899 trillion during the two terms of the Bush presidency. It has now gone up $4.939 trillion since President Obama took office.

The latest posting from the Bureau of Public Debt at the Treasury Department shows the National Debt now stands at $15.566 trillion. It was $10.626 trillion on President Bush's last day in office, which coincided with President Obama's first day.

The National Debt also now exceeds 100% of the nation's Gross Domestic Product, the total value of goods and services.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/national-debt-has-increased-more-under-obama-than-under-bush/

Reagan/Obama talked a great game.

But Governor Reagan/Candidate Obama criticized President Carter/President Bush for increasing the U.S. federal debt.
But President Reagan/President Obama not only ran up more federal debt than the Democrat/Republican he criticized. Reagan/Obama ran up/will run up more U.S. federal debt than all the other U.S. presidents before him, COMBINED!



















2OLD2MESSAROUND's photo
Tue 06/30/15 07:42 PM
Edited by 2OLD2MESSAROUND on Tue 06/30/15 07:59 PM
LTme asked >>>
Multiple issues here:

- What are our essential spending priorities?

- What spending can we / should we reduce or eliminate *?

And how can we stop being lied to about it?


1) put a 5 yr moratorium on 'ALL' foreign aid; reconfigure/revaluate those countries that are working with the articles for the funding - cut lose those that have been drinking from the benefit well but aren't following the mandates!
Especially in humanitarian issues!



This is quite the eye opener; top countries asking for AID in 2015
Israel = 3 million/ Afghanistan = 1,595 million/
Egypt = 1,506 million million/Pakistan = 881,880
Nigeria = 720,892 /Jordan = 671,000/ Tanzania = 589,886
Kenya = 553,891 / Ethiopia = 482,251 / Uganda = 474,484

http://i.imgur.com/A9HYF6N.jpg

And if you think that blowing all that 'FREE American Bucks' is helping us within the UN for voting power --- think again!


2) audit the DOD; it's never had a audit done on their books and that became flagrantly obvious during the mass losses of CASH {32+million} during the Iraq & Afghanistan aggressive action 10+years and still costing us mega bucks.





3) equality in our tax base; stop providing the upper echelon their superior tax breaks and enforce a 'FAIR SHARE'



There's more but my eyes are burning and I need to go to bed! waving

LTme's photo
Wed 07/01/15 02:00 AM
"This is quite the eye opener; top countries asking for AID in 2015
Israel = 3 million/ Afghanistan = 1,595 million/
Egypt = 1,506 million million/Pakistan = 881,880
Nigeria = 720,892 /Jordan = 671,000/ Tanzania = 589,886
Kenya = 553,891 / Ethiopia = 482,251 / Uganda = 474,484 "

from 2A's post

Nonsense.
Israel gets vastly more than $3 $mil a year.
I gather Israel has requested an increase this year, perhaps to $3 $Bil.

But in any case, whatever the TRUE $numbers are, tally it all up together, and as George Will says, it doesn't amount to a rounding error.

In a budget the size of the U.S. federal budget; terminating foreign aid would not balance the budget.

2OLD2MESSAROUND's photo
Wed 07/01/15 03:58 PM

"This is quite the eye opener; top countries asking for AID in 2015
Israel = 3 million/ Afghanistan = 1,595 million/
Egypt = 1,506 million million/Pakistan = 881,880
Nigeria = 720,892 /Jordan = 671,000/ Tanzania = 589,886
Kenya = 553,891 / Ethiopia = 482,251 / Uganda = 474,484 "

from 2A's post

Nonsense.
Israel gets vastly more than $3 $mil a year.
I gather Israel has requested an increase this year, perhaps to $3 $Bil.

But in any case, whatever the TRUE $numbers are, tally it all up together, and as George Will says, it doesn't amount to a rounding error.

In a budget the size of the U.S. federal budget; terminating foreign aid would not balance the budget.


Hmmmm...you might need to point out to me where I stated that my idea about the moratorium on all foreign aid 'would balance the budget' --- not even close to what/where I was going! But thanks...seems you've no wish to hear my idea's and just want to ASSume that you know!slaphead

I'm done! waving

mightymoe's photo
Wed 07/01/15 04:09 PM

"This is quite the eye opener; top countries asking for AID in 2015
Israel = 3 million/ Afghanistan = 1,595 million/
Egypt = 1,506 million million/Pakistan = 881,880
Nigeria = 720,892 /Jordan = 671,000/ Tanzania = 589,886
Kenya = 553,891 / Ethiopia = 482,251 / Uganda = 474,484 "

from 2A's post

Nonsense.
Israel gets vastly more than $3 $mil a year.
I gather Israel has requested an increase this year, perhaps to $3 $Bil.

But in any case, whatever the TRUE $numbers are, tally it all up together, and as George Will says, it doesn't amount to a rounding error.

In a budget the size of the U.S. federal budget; terminating foreign aid would not balance the budget.


Israel was getting around 10b a year, but that does say 2015 budget... i'm thinking obarry is letting his true muslim colors show here...

LTme's photo
Wed 07/01/15 04:30 PM
Thanks mm.

Not sure about the Irish guy you mentioned.

But iirc I heard Israel requested an approximate tripling of U.S. aid.

mightymoe's photo
Wed 07/01/15 09:10 PM

Thanks mm.

Not sure about the Irish guy you mentioned.

But iirc I heard Israel requested an approximate tripling of U.S. aid.


muslims, Irish, same difference... they both hate the Jews...which is why we should keep the money around 10 billion for Israel, they are always surrounded by hate...