Monday, September 19, 2005
LOST IN THE FLOOD: CONGRESS. or HOW YA GONNA PAY FOR ALL THAT GEORGIE? or REPUBLICAN PYRAMID SCHEME.
Much to Bush's consternation, uttering the words "I take responsibility" did not miraculously make everything better. Eventually it became apparent that he would need to do more to help the victims of the Hurricane, and to improve his flagging approval ratings. So on Thursday he held a televised address to the nation in which he promised "one of the largest reconstruction efforts the world has ever seen." Some in the president's own party estimated that Bush's reconstruction proposals would cost more than the war in Iraq, hundreds of billions of dollars.
There once was a time when a massive increase in spending such as this would cause some killjoy, green-eyeshade, bean-counter types to ask, sheepishly, "um, how, exactly, are you going to pay for that?" As you well know, that time is long past. Cough, cough. Our country is now so ridiculously far beyond the point where government revenues no longer cover our expenses, that it is laughable to even bother worrying about it. In 2004, the federal budget deficit was a record $412 billion. Throw in the money for Hurricane Katrina reconstruction, and the deficit might as well be "$800 gajillion" because actual numbers no longer matter. It's all just a massive pile of IOUs to foreign creditors, which we will foist upon future generations of Americans without their consent.
So, what the heck, how about if we just go ahead and pass another massive tax cut for the rich? Now would be the perfect time! In fact, let's just get rid of taxes altogether. Instead, we'll keep on spending more and more, and we'll keep borrowing more money from foreign banks. And when those foreign banks ask us to pay the interest (or, God forbid, the principal) on their loans, we'll just take out more loans from more banks. It'll be the world's greatest pyramid scheme! If we're lucky, we will all be dead before anyone figures out that someone has to actually pay for all this borrowing. To my nieces and nephews and children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren, all I have to say is, "Ha! In your face, suckers!"
from Democraticunderground.com
There once was a time when a massive increase in spending such as this would cause some killjoy, green-eyeshade, bean-counter types to ask, sheepishly, "um, how, exactly, are you going to pay for that?" As you well know, that time is long past. Cough, cough. Our country is now so ridiculously far beyond the point where government revenues no longer cover our expenses, that it is laughable to even bother worrying about it. In 2004, the federal budget deficit was a record $412 billion. Throw in the money for Hurricane Katrina reconstruction, and the deficit might as well be "$800 gajillion" because actual numbers no longer matter. It's all just a massive pile of IOUs to foreign creditors, which we will foist upon future generations of Americans without their consent.
So, what the heck, how about if we just go ahead and pass another massive tax cut for the rich? Now would be the perfect time! In fact, let's just get rid of taxes altogether. Instead, we'll keep on spending more and more, and we'll keep borrowing more money from foreign banks. And when those foreign banks ask us to pay the interest (or, God forbid, the principal) on their loans, we'll just take out more loans from more banks. It'll be the world's greatest pyramid scheme! If we're lucky, we will all be dead before anyone figures out that someone has to actually pay for all this borrowing. To my nieces and nephews and children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren, all I have to say is, "Ha! In your face, suckers!"
from Democraticunderground.com
# posted by The Punisher @ Monday, September 19, 2005 
