The Debt Ceiling

Politicians are a unique breed with a unique luxury. They get to choose either to confront a problem now, OR unlike most of us they can defer the decision until a later date when they’re no longer in office, and let their successors or future generations deal with the fallout. As Greece is currently discovering, the fallout can be crippling. But you can bet the Greek politicians who could have nipped this problem in the bud years ago are doing just fine. And for them, that’s all that matters.

Politicians rarely make decisions based on what’s best for the country. They make decisions based on what the reaction will be from the public, and how it’ll affect their ability to be re-elected. The current example is the US’s enormous debt, and what they call the “Debt Ceiling Crisis”. Like any debt situation, the real-world solution is either bring in more money, or spend less money. Well, the Republicans don’t want to raise taxes and anger their constituency. The Democrats don’t want to cut services or benefits and anger THEIR constituency. So the solution the government is looking at is to INCREASE the debt ceiling.

They won’t stop wasteful spending projects, or close tax loopholes. They won’t cut foreign aid that props up rich warlords and despots and does nothing for the masses. They won’t stop wasting billions annually on the dysfunctional United Nations. They won’t impose import duties on Chinese goods. All things we have advocated on this program for several years. No, they’ll increase the debt load.

Of course, they position it as a way to ensure that seniors’ Social Security checks go out, and so that our men and women in uniform won’t have to try paying their mortgages with IOUs from Uncle Sam. They won’t mention that this debt WILL come due some day, and all they’re doing is pushing the problem now bigger than ever into the future, much the way former Greek governments did.

Why burden YOUR voters, when you can burden future voters? Why make the right decision for the country, when you can make the right decision for your party and your own re-election? In another ten or twenty years, will we be watching the news as Americans are forced to deal with massive, sweeping cuts and huge tax increases, as the Greeks are now? Maybe. And the politicians who enabled it? They’ll be long retired, and well taken care of. Naturally.

What it boils down to is that politicians are more concerned with THEIR jobs than with YOUR jobs. No country wants to see more unemployed citizens… but a few more unemployed politicians wouldn’t hurt!