Zeev's Turnips Talk Politics (ZTTP)

[teapeebubbles]

U.S. Comptroller General David Walker has joined a growing number of economists and officials warning about
America's debt problems. In a Nov. 15 interview with USA Today, Walker laments the country's "deficits in its budget, its balance of payments, its savings -
and its leadership." He likens the United States "to Rome before the end of the empire."
But best-selling author Addison Wiggin takes the comparison one step
further.
"Throughout history, every empire has found a way to pay for its
expansion," Wiggin says. "Yet today, politicians have a different mantra.
Instead of, 'We came, we saw, we conquered,' it's 'We came, we saw ... we
borrowed.'"
Wiggin's latest book, "Empire of Debt," co-written with Bill Bonner, takes
a close look at how America - and its people - became so dependent on debt,
and how tremendous that debt has become. For example, last year the
government's total annual deficits hit $7 trillion, according to Comptroller
General Walker. That's roughly $24,000 the government owes for every American
man, woman and child.
Bonner and Wiggin's book also warns that much of America's debt is held
overseas. The Levy Institute estimates that the United States will owe
foreigners $8 trillion by 2008 - 60% of our Gross Domestic Product.
"That means, if we were paying off the debt, and that's a big 'if,' 6 out
of every 10 dollars that you and I earn in America would go to pay off a loan
in China, or Japan or South Korea or the rest of Asia," Wiggin says. "That's
the kind of mortgage nobody can afford, including the U.S. government, or our
kids."
Wiggin and Bonner believe the only way to prevent the nation from
following Rome's footsteps is to spur the government into action. That's why
their company, Agora Financial Publishing, is sending a copy of "Empire of
Debt" to every U.S. senator and representative on Capitol Hill. Additional
copies are going to the Federal Reserve and President Bush.
But Wiggin is not hopeful the politicians will do what is necessary. "You
can always count on politicians to do the wrong thing," he says. "It's
important for everyone to understand the danger and to prepare for what could
happen when the government's response falls short."
SOURCE www.dailyreckoning.com