Post by: Justin on March 22, 2006, 08:20:33 AM
So click the link already.
Post by: Headless Thompson Gunner on March 22, 2006, 08:59:13 AM
It claims that national defense spending accounts for about half of our tax dolars. This is flat out wrong, as national defense amounts to only about 15% of federal expenditures.
Social security (~20%) acounts for much more than national defense, yet SS doesn't appear in that diagram.
Interest on the national debt (~13%) is almost as costly as defense.
Medical welfare (Medicaid, Medicare, etc - 25%) consume 1.6 times more federal money than national defense, but you'd never know it from looking at that diagram.
Post by: Art Eatman on March 22, 2006, 09:07:17 AM
http://www.caseyresearch.com/wwnkOptIn.php
Post by: griz on March 22, 2006, 10:05:03 AM
Post by: Guest on March 22, 2006, 10:44:38 AM
Move along folks, nothing to see here. Pay no attention to the nice professorial looking banker man behind the curtain, loading money into the helicopter. Doesn't mean anything- why, yes, you have seen him on television lately. But don't stare, it isn't polite. Yes, yes, it IS Mr. Bernanke. Now go on, don't be a nuisance.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/03/16/news/notes.php
Let's see, put it in writing, maybe that will help:
$9,000,000,000,000.00 That's nine trillion dollars. Of federal government debt, that they will OPENLY AND FREELY ADMIT TO. Nine thousand billion dollars, to put it another way. Or since a billion is a thousand million, that would be nine thousand, thousand million dollars.
Are you beginning to tumble to the scale of the debt I am talking about here yet? And as I said, this does not include the other interesting accounting tricks Uncle Sam uses to hide his profligate ways. You want an intro to those, take a look at http://www.gillespieresearch.com/cgi-bin/bgn/ . It seems that total federal liabilities are in the neighborhood of $51 trillion. Some ritzy neighborhood, huh? Need a source? Mr Williams again, at http://www.weedenco.com/welling/Downloads/2006/0804welling022106.pdf .
You want the humorous take on this, see the Mogambo Guru's column at http://www.321gold.com/editorials/daughty/daughty032206.html . Sorry, but I see no humor in it at all, it scares the bejeezies out of me.
lpl/nc
Post by: The Rabbi on March 22, 2006, 11:38:50 AM
Post by: Headless Thompson Gunner on March 22, 2006, 01:08:04 PM
Post by: ...has left the building. on March 22, 2006, 02:20:47 PM
Post by: Guest on March 22, 2006, 02:42:28 PM
Quote from: Daniel Flory
Does anybody know how much revenue in taxes, fees, etc. the Federal Government pulls in?
About half a $trillion less than they spend per year.
Post by: Justin on March 22, 2006, 02:56:21 PM
Quote from: Daniel Flory
Does anybody know how much revenue in taxes, fees, etc. the Federal Government pulls in?
More than they damned well ought to.
Post by: grampster on March 22, 2006, 02:58:08 PM
Post by: Guest on March 23, 2006, 07:44:12 AM
Quote from: grampster
I divorce thee, I divorce thee, I divorce thee. See, now the the debt is canceled and we can start over new tomorrow.
If only that tactic could secede. 
Post by: ...has left the building. on March 23, 2006, 08:14:26 AM
Quote from: Justin
Quote from: Daniel Flory
Does anybody know how much revenue in taxes, fees, etc. the Federal Government pulls in?
More than they damned well ought to.Post by: Glock Glockler on March 23, 2006, 01:14:39 PM
Your buddies in the mortgage business can probably give you a good idea of our financial strength, we have our finger on the pulse of the economy and see people's situations every day. As far as I can most people are just getting by, barely keeping their heads above water, partially from their own stupidity but also from a bad govt/economic situation. If a large portion of the country is 2 paychecks away from going under how strong can the country be?
Post by: ...has left the building. on March 23, 2006, 01:23:42 PM
I don't dispute the effects of high taxation or the state of the common man, but I am interested in looking at the federal government just like any other corporation. I'd like to see various financial ratios and figures.
Post by: Glock Glockler on March 23, 2006, 01:33:22 PM
Post by: Guest on March 23, 2006, 01:33:24 PM
Quote from: Daniel Flory
Quote from: Justin
Quote from: Daniel Flory
Does anybody know how much revenue in taxes, fees, etc. the Federal Government pulls in?
More than they damned well ought to.
The yearly budget as of the most recent figures works out like this:
Receipts: $2,415,900,000,000. ($2.4 trillion)
Outlays: $2,770.100,000,000. ($2.7 trillion)
Deficit: $354,200,000,000. ($354 billion)
By "we" do you mean the United States Government (USG)? If so, the USG is the greatest debtor nation - not only currently, but ever.
Post by: Tallpine on March 23, 2006, 02:04:40 PM
Not to mention the unfunded liability for future social security and medicare benefits.
If the US govt was a corporation, the SEC would shut them down.
Post by: ...has left the building. on March 23, 2006, 02:18:28 PM
Quote from: mercedesrules
Quote from: Daniel Flory
Quote from: Justin
More than they damned well ought to.
That I agree with, but I'm trying to get a true gauge of how strong we are financially. Just having numbers of debt are completely meaningless without numbers of income. So far, I haven't found any resource that gives an accurate measure of federal receipts.The yearly budget as of the most recent figures works out like this:
Receipts: $2,415,900,000,000. ($2.4 trillion)
Outlays: $2,770.100,000,000. ($2.7 trillion)
Deficit: $354,200,000,000. ($354 billion)
By "we" do you mean the United States Government (USG)? If so, the USG is the greatest debtor nation - not only currently, but ever.
If the USG were a person they couldn't even be approved for a credit card.
Post by: roo_ster on March 23, 2006, 03:37:26 PM
Post by: The Rabbi on March 23, 2006, 04:30:09 PM
Quote from: Daniel Flory
Thanks! That is very interesting. And yes, by "we" I mean the USG. I have no choice but to say "we" since I pay taxes If the USG were a person they couldn't even be approved for a credit card.
How many individuals do you know that can command others to pay them money under severe penalty and create their own money? I'd lend money to anyone like that. If the USG were a person they couldn't even be approved for a credit card.The USG doesnt need to adhere to GAAP because it isnt a corporation or business entity. So accounting rules don't apply here. As anyone who has had any experience with companies and how they account for things knows, companies have some leeway in how they categorize expenses and income. USG is the same but more so. I dont argue they are always on the up and up. They aren't. But it isnt fair to compare them like that.
Post by: ...has left the building. on March 23, 2006, 04:43:46 PM
Quote from: The Rabbi
Quote from: Daniel Flory
Thanks! That is very interesting. And yes, by "we" I mean the USG. I have no choice but to say "we" since I pay taxes If the USG were a person they couldn't even be approved for a credit card.
How many individuals do you know that can command others to pay them money under severe penalty and create their own money? I'd lend money to anyone like that. If the USG were a person they couldn't even be approved for a credit card.The USG doesnt need to adhere to GAAP because it isnt a corporation or business entity. So accounting rules don't apply here. As anyone who has had any experience with companies and how they account for things knows, companies have some leeway in how they categorize expenses and income. USG is the same but more so. I dont argue they are always on the up and up. They aren't. But it isnt fair to compare them like that.
Post by: The Rabbi on March 24, 2006, 05:18:05 AM
Quote from: Daniel Flory
Quote from: The Rabbi
Quote from: Daniel Flory
Thanks! That is very interesting. And yes, by "we" I mean the USG. I have no choice but to say "we" since I pay taxes If the USG were a person they couldn't even be approved for a credit card.
How many individuals do you know that can command others to pay them money under severe penalty and create their own money? I'd lend money to anyone like that. If the USG were a person they couldn't even be approved for a credit card.The USG doesnt need to adhere to GAAP because it isnt a corporation or business entity. So accounting rules don't apply here. As anyone who has had any experience with companies and how they account for things knows, companies have some leeway in how they categorize expenses and income. USG is the same but more so. I dont argue they are always on the up and up. They aren't. But it isnt fair to compare them like that.