Paul Krugman as case in point, here:
There’s been some hysteria about the administration’s new estimate that the cumulative deficit will be $9 trillion over the next decade. Don’t get me wrong: this is bad. But it’s being treated as an inconceivable sum, far beyond anything that could possibly be handled. And it isn’t.
What you have to bear in mind is that the economy — and hence the federal tax base — is enormous, too.
Please note the typical leftist tactic of imputing mental instability to those who dissent from liberal-left ideas: you are 'hysterical' if you question the wisdom of running massive debt and thinking that we can spend our way out of it. To take a second example, if you point out the very real threat of radical Islam, the leftist will call you an 'Islamaphobe' which of course implies that your concern is not rational but simply an irrational fear. Examples can be multiplied. Oppose the morality of homosexual practices and you are a 'homophobe.' Obama treats criticism of his socialized medicine proposals as fear-mongering. This shows what little respect liberals and leftists have for their fellow citizens. It is a sign of profound disrespect for one's interlocutor when one treats his thoughts and utterances as mere symptoms of an underlying psychological malaise. But that's the Left for you. They are elitists. They don't respect you, but they want to control you.
Note also Krugman's point about the size of the federal tax base. The Feds have plenty of opportunity to fleece the taxpayer. And that is what they will do.
Now read something from an economist with his head screwed on properly, Nouriel Roubini, The United States of Ponzi:
A government that will issue trillions of dollars of new debt to pay for this severe recession and socialize private losses may risk becoming a Ponzi government if--in the medium term--it does not return to fiscal discipline and debt sustainability.
A country that has--for over 25 years--spent more than income and thus run an endless string of current account deficit--and has thus become the largest net foreign debtor in the world (with net foreign liabilities that are likely to be over $3 trillion by the end of this year)--is also a Ponzi country that may eventually default on its foreign debt if it does not, over time, tighten its belt and start running smaller current account deficits and actual trade surpluses.
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