Saturday, April 3, 2010

THE US TAXPAYER IS BANKRUPT

I am terribly sorry to have to be one to tell you this - but, you're bankrupt. No, really, it's true, here let me explain it to you.

The median biweekly income in the US is $1,478. Hey do not complain - this salary includes the guys at the top if you are closer to the bottom like a retail worker, your average check would be barely $700. But that is another travesty and we cannot cover them all in one post. Also, of course, this is before taxes. Just for the sake of simplicity and to keep all the statistics equal we will pretend there are no taxes. Don’t get excited, it won’t keep you happy for long.

Now, let’s pretend it is a nice warm Friday. Not just any Friday but a payday. Awesome, you run to the bank to cash your check. You hand the payroll check over and wait for the cashier. While you are waiting for the check to be cashed you decide to open your mail. There is a pale gold envelope with the US government seals all over it. This must be important, so you rip it open. Yuk, It’s an invoice – holy cow - a bill for $116,599. It is your share of the national debt – due and payable.

What is the first thing you think? Well if you are the average american, you decide it must not be real. After all, that’s how we have treated most debt and certainly, the national debt. Haven’t our own leaders such said “deficits don’t matter’? It must be a mistake, some sort of joke. Well, of course it is not fake or a joke – it is very very real and not funny in the least. Unless you are one of those people who laugh at funerals. If you’re like me your thinking – Im done for – bankruptcy and ruin looms close. How did I get into this mess? How can I possibly pay this off.

The per taxpayer debt burden goes up by over $40 every single day of the week. No weekends off, no holidays. The fierce reality is the average american worker earns less than 106 dollar every day of the week. In other words every other Friday, when you cash your $1,478 paycheck you are another $556 in debt. Feeling better yet?

Now I can guarrantee you , that if these figures were presented to a financial advisor they would immediately advise you to file bankruptcy. This is real, this is truth, the United States is bankrupt and it is going to take you down with it. You may or may not be able to do anything to soften the crisis, but the meltdown is coming and its best to face it.
I am not going to go further with this post, because I want you to stay here with the stark reality that yes you do owe this money and believe me it is real. Not only do you owe this amount of money, but it is increasing by leaps and bounds every day.

Ok – I am done, return to your lives. But I would like for you to at least spend a few minutes every payday thinking of the situation we are in. If we face it realistically, we have a better chance of surviving the inevitable economic consequences to our nation and ourselves. I will provide any hope and any guidance I can find. Stay tuned.

NOTES – Following are the numbers and the method I used to prepare this post. All figures came from the US Government. First, you may notice that I often use the long numbers when talking about debt. I do so because we have become numb to the words billion and trillion and millions don’t even seem to count in todays crazy meltdown of common sense.

1) As of 10pm on April 2, 2010 the national debt is $12,690,026,571,814.
2) There are 138,584,486 people employed in the US.
3) However, many workers fall below the taxable threshold.
3) The number of taxpayers in the US is estimated at 108,834,743.
4) Now if you divide our national debt by the number of actual taxpayers you get a debt per taxpayer of a little over $116,599.

PS: in the time it took me to write this post another 9,865 people lost their job so that increases our share of the debt. Nor did I throw in the extra $1,480,635 the US government ran up in debt in the 29 seconds it took for me to copy down the number and verify it.

Welcome to the economic meltdown of the United States. Hang on, because this roller coaster hasn’t even crested the first rise yet. Keep all hands securely in the vehicle and hold on.

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