Do you agree that this is the most important issue facing us today?

Question

Do you agree that the most important issue facing the US today is the out of control national debt? If so, why? If not, then why not?

Personally I think that this issue needs to be addressed before all others. If we can reduce the national debt to pre Bush Sr levels, then the dollar will recover and the economic issues we face will also be greatly reduced.

Answer 1

First tell me how a government that has the sole responsibility to print and or create money

Ran out of it and needed to borrow something which only they could create?

Some other entity has created and loaned our federal government money .... now how can that be ?

Did we get in foreign currency ? Goods and services ?

How did we receive this money or loan or work or material ?

Who gave it to us ?

If the government creats a set amount of currency per year and that is loaned out at 5 % interest --

If the government doesn't print and keep on printing that 5% how will this sum be made up ? Is this partially the explanation behind the ever increasing budget deficits ?

Isn't this a set to explode during a stable economy vs the constantly growing economy - just to pay the interest ?

I agree that the deficit and the debt are very important issues

But shouldn't we know more about this debt first ? How we got it where and from who and why an entity other than the government has been allowed to give it something that only our government is supposed to be responsible for creating ?

Answer 2

Well, yes. The national debt is tied to so many other topics though. Universal healthcare, more social programs, etc. only add to that debt. They sound great in theory, but actually only hurt us.

But, to answer the question definatively, yes. The nat'l debt must be reduced. And the only way to do it is to drastically reduce gov't spending

Answer 3

To me, this is certainly up there. But the most important issue, in my opinion, is global warming. This is something that threatens not just our country or our way of life but the world. Species are being made extinct every day, the rainforests are diminishing at incredible speeds, droughts and volatile weather patterns are erupting all around the globe. I think that before anything else, we should be concerned with the environment. I don't think the environment should be a partisan issue, as it is. It should be something everyone is concerned with, and we should be taking action to find alternative energy and reduce our emissions. Americans should care because we contribute 25% of the world's greenhouse gases, though we are only 5% of the population. If you look at it per capita, we are by far the largest carbon emitters.

National debt is important to me, but I don't think it is as pressing as global warming. Issues like the genocide in Darfur also come to mind as being more pressing, but it's not like we're ever going to do anything about it. And of course to get rid of our national debt, it is very important that we get out of Iraq, though there are a myriad of reasons for that as well.  

Answer 4

Well, the Republicans who claim to be the experts on the Economy and the Country's finances don't seem to worry much about it. It is funny how they always accuse the Democrats of Tax and spend but they have been the biggest spenders ever. I do believe that a huge national debt does affect our economy but since we have lost most of our manufacturing base, the products we make like Hollywood movies are great exports so that a weak Dollar is actually an advantage and helps reduce our trade deficit. If we are going to rely more on more on exportable products for new jobs, as they keep telling us, then a weak Dollar is a benefit.

Answer 5

Yes, now that immigration enforcement is starting to gain traction, I do think it's time to address the national debt.  Why, you ask?  Because if we're so friggin rich like our goverment tells us, then why are we in so much debt?  I mean the soviets used to say how in control they were of everything till they collapsed.  Why not us?

Answer 6

I agree that insane spending by congress is a major problem. It is one of the major contributing factors in the the declining economy and the falling dollar. Any person with common sense can tell you that spending money you don't have is a dangerous proposition. Whether it's your personal finance or government spending, spending money you don't have will only lead to bigger problems down the road.  

Answer 7

I think its a h**l of a lot more important than whether or not we open more area for offshore drilling, or health care. Energy, war, infrastructure, none of this can really be fixed if our money is worthless.

Answer 8

No.  In fact, it's low on the list.  It is far more important to maintain tax and economic policies which will insure long-term growth.  The most important element of this is to control the value of the currency by controlling the amount of money in circulation by having the Treasury buy or sell bonds, as required.

Answer 9

Pretty important for sure.  The dollar can recover before we control the debt but President Bush seems to have no interest in a strong dollar.  

Answer 10

A budget deficit represents an intergenerational transfer: We pay lower taxes today so our children can pay higher ones tomorrow. Saddle future taxpayers with enough debt, as Bush is doing, and they will be unable to meet their own needs. Saddle them with debt at the very time programs such as Social Security and Medicare face deficits, and you risk social catastrophe.

Answer 11

I don't think it is the most important issue as of now, but i think it may be the most important issue within a couple of years. It is ridiculous how out of control the budget is.