Beyond comprehension

House faces tough vote on $1.9 trillion more debt

The expenditure and debt numbers are now far beyond human comprehension. If my arithmetic is right, our $14.3 trillion debt would saddle every one of Earth's 6.7 billion people with a personal debt of $2,134. That'd be really bad news to the inhabitants of the world's 45 nations where income per capita is less than $500 per year.

And of course Congress's "debt limits" don't limit anything. They're not a straitjacket on the Federal Government, they're pants with an infinitely expandable waist -- so in Washington it's "All You Can Eat, All the Time."

Let's see what interest rates we have to pay to finance this catastrophic debt, because that's a budget expenditure, as well as raising costs for private sector borrowing. The only reason the inflation rate hasn't taken off, is that the economy continues to wallow in recession, with huge outlays for unemployment supplementals extending as far as the eye can see, and on over the horizon.

What, exactly, is Obama going to do, economic genius that he so obviously is? Seriously large, stimulative tax cuts? Not likely. But could there be some tiny devil perched on Obama's shoulder right this minute, whispering into his ample ear, "O powerful one, Why borrow money if you can just print it?"

If I were the Chinese, I think I'd demand repayment in gold bullion.

Byron