Our growing problem with our growing debt.

A couple of things have inspired this post. Recently the national debt exceeded 15 trillion dollars. That is 15,000,000,000,000. A few days later Congress decided not to pass a balanced budget amendment. I am growing increasingly concerned over this. Our GDP, the gross domestic product, or the total of all goods and services produced in the United States is 14.58 trillion. US GDP

What that means if that if we were to shut down all forms of government and impose a 100% tax on everything that everyone in the country made for 1 year we could still not pay off the debt. This is roughly the same as having personal unsecured loan that equals the total of your family’s yearly income.

One final thing that concerns me is the total refusal of the Government to spend less than they take in. At 2010 levels our President and the Congress spend 1.49 for every dollar that they take in in taxes and fees.

We really do need a balanced budget amendment. My idea (and I am paid to drive truck not come up with political ideas) is to treat the federal budget just the same as you would treat a household budget. This is how I envision that this would work.

Congress would be required to base the budget for the current year on the revenues from the previous fiscal year. The absolute limit on spending would be set at 90% of the previous years income. This would be AMAZINGLY painful for the first few years. Of course by design this will create a surplus. In order to spend any part of this surplus a 75% majority of both houses and the president would need to sign off on it.

The surplus would grow from year to year and once it reaches 100% of the federal budget anything over that level could be spent. This 1 year surplus would be there should at any time we have to go to war, or a national disaster of unprecedented proportions strikes.

Unfortunately every amendment ever adopted has started in the congress, and to be quite frank there are very few in the congress that have the intestinal fortitude to put something this strong forward. There is a procedure in the Constitution that allows the states to call for an amendment without the congress, but it has never been used, it requires 34 states to call for a article V convention, and while it did come close in the late 1980's the congress gave in a little and promised to do better. Enough of the states folded that the convention never happened and congress forgot about it's promise and we end up where we are now.

Being a realist I do not believe a constitutional convention will ever take place. I do have hope that an amendment can happen through congress. It will not be as strong, but it can happen if the public pushes hard enough.

So what to take from this? Well of you are not politically active become active. Call your Representative to the house and your Senators. Everyone serving in the House and Senate have email addresses, start writing. I myself have written several letters and do not plan to stop until I am no longer able to type. These people are supposed to be representing me and as such I feel responsible to let them know how I feel.

I cannot state strongly enough how important this is. We are on track to become the next country like Spain, Italy, or Greece. Look at what they did and where they are now and look at what we are doing now. Will there be an apocalypse if we do not change our ways? Honestly no, there won't be one. Will the pain be worse if we don’t do something? It absolutely will.