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America's Budget Problem In One Chart
In a country in which the aging population wants their (10,000 kcal) cake, and the diabetes treatment for free too, the chart below is what happens.
Bank of America explains:
Where’s the budget problem: The rapid growth in federal spending largely reflects increases in spending on mandatory programs, particularly the major health care programs — Medicare & Medicaid — and Social Security. As a share of GDP, total spending on these programs would rise to 14% of GDP by 2038. That is twice the 7% average of the prior 40 years.
Furthermore, as we have shown previously, anyone preaching about a "stable" 75% debt/GDP should probably first look at the following public long-term chart from the CBO.
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Turn the sipgots on? When the fuck were they turned off? 85 billion per month, soon to be 120 billion.
Euthanasia!
Social security payment is not spending. It is returning contributed capital to the worker, paid in over a lifetime.
Medicare, medicaid, welfare, unemployment benefits, defense, SNAP... those are all spending.
What planet are you on where SS payments are paid back from what you put in? Social Security is ONLY a tax. There is no account set aside for you, no annuity, no contract between you and the government. This has been fully disclosed in the courts, and also congressional hearings in the 1950's with the people who originally setup the system. IF you get payments they are considered a "gratuity", not the fulfillment of a contractual arrangement. Congress can modify or eliminate the gratuity at any time they wish.
Consider social security payments anti-riot payments/vote buying for the elderly just like others in your list that you named as spending.
Cheers.
Minor correction: there is a payroll tax for Medicare, although it probably is far too low to cover the costs (I haven't checked).
Regarding Social Security, I calculate that it will take about ten years to recoup what I paid into the system (including the employer match); that is not in terms of purchasing power, only in nominal dollar terms.
As for the rest of your list of spending items, only national defense is mentioned in the Constitution as a valid function of the central government.
David Walker on SS and unfunded liabilities: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XX0ENqLSbjY
Please, Oblama NEVER considers costs or practicalities or LAW, particularly if those "trivial" things just get in the way of his grand, totalitarian vision. To the contrary, our King simply commands his minions to "make it look like its affordable" or just "say and keep saying" that its affordable, regardless of whatever horrific cost projections are put in front of him. Oblama has his media lapdogs brainwash our dumbass public with false talking points, and his even dumber senators smear and destroy anyone that says otherwise. Oh yes, how our tolerant leader makes us all so proud. LOL
yea, and the scumbbag lawyers suing anybody and everybody forcing our collective healthcare costs sky high just so these creepy parasites can drive their ten Porche's to and from their multiple vacation homes. The political and societal bullshit is so vast and deep and citizen apathy so pervasive that we are NEVER going to fix the mess that we face.
But it will "fix" itself - soon.
Luckily the TBTF banks are already in socialist heaven. Where was Boehner when congress funded the bailouts?
The argument to stop the Free Stuff Army got a lot harder when the corporations spent so much time and largess at the government tit.
Obviously TBTF hold a far greater degree of power than the Free Shit Army, even though numerically insignifican in terms of physical membership.
Certainly helps to have "the Right Connections" doesn't it!
Calamity is certainty. Plan and prepare accordingly!
So what is the trade?
They actually expect publically held federal debt to go from about 70% of GDP to 250% of GDP? With what savings? Doesn't the average american have $700 in savings and $70,000 in personal debt right now?
Social security revenue stream: http://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/cbofiles/attachments/43648-SocialSecurity.pdf
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2013/10/social-security-lock-box-revisited-and.html