Washington’s $210 Trillion Deficit

[smith coins]

The history has proven, that governments cannot be trusted controlling the monetary system.

[aso118]

The history has proven, that governments cannot be trusted controlling the monetary system.

When people lose faith in the government's ability to control the value of the money in circulation, they buy gold. Historically, gold has been looked as a hedge against inflation. During times of turmoil, gold's price shoots up.
Now they have a digitized alternative - Bitcoin.

[Q7]

It puzzles me a lot on how all these can actually sustain itself for so long without collapsing. I mean there must be an end to it. Trillion is indeed not a small number and imagine for the next few decades to come, it will just blow up to infinity. I'm just wondering if it really happens what are we gonna to do with all the heaps of notes lying around.

[deisik]

It puzzles me a lot on how all these can actually sustain itself for so long without collapsing. I mean there must be an end to it. Trillion is indeed not a small number and imagine for the next few decades to come, it will just blow up to infinity. I'm just wondering if it really happens what are we gonna to do with all the heaps of notes lying around.

There would be no heaps of notes lying around. All these trillions are just numbers in a computer's storage media (just like bitcoins), which can be potentially erased as quickly as they have been created, that is with a single keypress (or two)...

[Erdogan]

The music stops when the lenders don't want to lend more (in case of the 200 trillion number which includes future liabilities, you also have to include: When people stop trusting that pensions and welfare will be paid).

Lots of people do not know that they have lent out assets to the government through their pension funds. They believe in the lies and the scams from the state. Lots of people will have to learn really quick when the reset comes. I wonder how it will play out.

[B.A.S.]

The music stops when the lenders don't want to lend more (in case of the 200 trillion number which includes future liabilities, you also have to include: When people stop trusting that pensions and welfare will be paid).

Lots of people do not know that they have lent out assets to the government through their pension funds. They believe in the lies and the scams from the state. Lots of people will have to learn really quick when the reset comes. I wonder how it will play out.

I believe this could be one of the mechanisms for diverting a dying debt system. Many companies in the US no longer offer pensions. Most have done away with this system in preference of 401Ks or other limited investment vehicles. Even then, the 401Ks offered have a fraction of the returns they used to and allow no control over funds chosen by the individual employee.

I see the potential in the future for the USG to tax workers on all benefits given (including healthcare costs). Retirement/healthcare and the likes will all become the personal responsibility of the individual. The effect of this will be massive especially with the youth no longer saving for their future.

The USG can then used this increased tax pool to finance its existing obligations and transitory long enough for the die off of generations on the older (broken) system utilized today. Future generations will have no idea what Social Security or Medicare was.

[OROBTC]

...

And it ain't getting any better.  Just today I read that Obama's new Budget forecasts a deficit (FY 2016?) of some $860 billion.  Which of course is just another lie.

I expect politicians to be extra-eager to spend our money.  I am dismayed that the people elect them to do so.  Our people seem to be either greedy or uninformed (or both).  *Sigh*

Our (USA anyway, probably Europe, Japan, etc.) is not only peeing away our valued savings (ZIRP & NIRP), but our liberties as well.

I wonder if I should start that "Plan B Countries" I have been thinking about........

[aso118]

...

And it ain't getting any better.  Just today I read that Obama's new Budget forecasts a deficit (FY 2016?) of some $860 billion.  Which of course is just another lie.

I expect politicians to be extra-eager to spend our money.  I am dismayed that the people elect them to do so.  Our people seem to be either greedy or uninformed (or both).  *Sigh*

Our (USA anyway, probably Europe, Japan, etc.) is not only peeing away our valued savings (ZIRP & NIRP), but our liberties as well.

I wonder if I should start that "Plan B Countries" I have been thinking about........

Plan B Countries? This made me start thinking about which countries actually run a budget surplus.
Surprised to find that Germany is right up there.

http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2015/02/24/germanys-budget-surplus-strengthens-hand-in-dealing-with-vulnerable-eurozone-economies/

[alh]

Could someone explain how this relates to Bitcoin? The overall Bitcoin economy and such doesn't register at all in this kind of discussion, does it?

[aso118]

Could someone explain how this relates to Bitcoin? The overall Bitcoin economy and such doesn't register at all in this kind of discussion, does it?

The more governments screw up their monetary systems, the brighter Bitcoin's prospects become. 

[bitboy11]

Their debt means nothing as there is no one in higher authority for them to answer to.

Who will force them to repay their debts?
Who will place sanctions on the USA?
The answer is Nobody.

If any country dares to challenge their currency or authority, that country will quickly be undermined or their government destroyed and replaced by US puppets.

[NeuroticFish]

Imho the number means (almost) nothing. Dollar (like most currencies) is only ... paper which the government tells you it has some value.
The actual value of this paper is adjusted according to the government needs, using inflation or deflation.

Sorry if my view is too simplistic...

[deisik]

Their debt means nothing as there is no one in higher authority for them to answer to.

Who will force them to repay their debts?
Who will place sanctions on the USA?
The answer is Nobody.

If any country dares to challenge their currency or authority, that country will quickly be undermined or their government destroyed and replaced by US puppets.

China is the largest holder of the US national debt. You are still going to argue that this country will be quickly undermined and their government replaced by the US puppets in case the Chinese government decides to get rid of their US debt stock? Russia has recently been seen selling US treasuries, and so what?

For the US economy to collapse it would be enough that countries stopped buying the US debt

[oblivi]

Could someone explain how this relates to Bitcoin? The overall Bitcoin economy and such doesn't register at all in this kind of discussion, does it?

The more governments screw up their monetary systems, the brighter Bitcoin's prospects become. 

This would be the logical thing to think, but for this to become a fact we need educated people to know what Bitcoin is, otherwise if they want to save their money somewhere they will go for the classics (USD and metals).

[B.A.S.]

Could someone explain how this relates to Bitcoin? The overall Bitcoin economy and such doesn't register at all in this kind of discussion, does it?

The more governments screw up their monetary systems, the brighter Bitcoin's prospects become. 

This would be the logical thing to think, but for this to become a fact we need educated people to know what Bitcoin is, otherwise if they want to save their money somewhere they will go for the classics (USD and metals).

BTC is currently one of the worst financial vehicles to place one's savings into. It is wildly speculative and far too volatile to risk hard earned capital for diminishing returns. Traditional savings routes in IRAs, CDs, mutual funds, heck even a savings account (as low as the interest rates are) are far more safe currently.

I liken BTC to that of a penny stock today. Put some cash into it. It may crash into the moon or hit the basement. What I find exciting is that BTC is educating the younger people of today (far more technologically advanced) on economics and how monetary policy works in a real-time way.