Probably Be Hearing This Stat Again

According to this piece in the Times, most states are even more in debt than they let on. Note the table at left; Alaska has the greatest indebtedness of any state in the Union, owing 70% of its GDP, which is to say that they’ve gone Greek. If you-know-who hadn’t resigned, no doubt she’d have had some work to do fixing that mess. But you know, the government that governs least governs the most debt. It’s nice when your lack of capabilities dovetails with your do-nothing philosophy.

Share/Save/Bookmark

2 Responses to “Probably Be Hearing This Stat Again”

  1. David in Cal Says:

    Excellent point, Steve. It’s frightening that our states have an unfunded liability of $3 trillion.

    However, it’s a lot more frightening that Medicare and Social Security have an unfunded liability of $107 trillion. And, the new obligations added by Obama and the Democratic Congress will add to the government’s liabilities.

    Perhaps the most upsetting aspect is our leaders’ obliviousness. Obama, Nancy Pelosi and the Dems continue to spend as if they had all the money in the world.

  2. Michael Says:

    You’re right about the debt crisis, David. It is a deeply scary problem that gets deeper by the second. And neither party seems at all willing to attack the only real solution, the politically impossible cuts in Social Security benefits and defense spending.

    But your last paragraph misses the mark. The Democrats could do more-we all could. But these are not heedless, reckless spenders-they have capped discretionary spending. Within the world that they live, they are trying-which is more than I can say for their predecessors, who didn’t include the Iraq War in the budget, as if it was being paid for by the Money Tree in the back yard.

Leave a Reply