printWhen Standard & Poor’s cut the American credit outlook to negative, one Canadian wag mocked the credit ratings agency’s “special talent for arriving at the morgue and predicting the demise of the deceased.”
Now the money market’s mortician has made it official:
Via the WSJ: “Standard & Poor’s said U.S. Treasury debt no longer deserved to be considered among the safest investments in the world. S&P removed for the first time the triple-A rating the U.S. has held for 70 years, saying the budget deal recently brokered in Washington didn’t do enough to address the gloomy long-term picture for America’s finances.”
Ask Vladimir Putin, who knows a lot more about inflation that does “Zero,” and he’ll tell you that downgrading obligations such as have been incurred by the USA to an AA+ score is still too optimistic.
The mighty USA’s finances “rank below Liechtenstein and on par with Belgium and New Zealand.”
Democrats will raise taxes to fight the deficit but will adamantly refuse to cut spending. Republicans will cut spending to fight the deficit but adamantly refuse to raise taxes. Result – no deficit cut except projected in some imaginary future… Meanwhile, more interest payments (mostly going overseas), mortgage rates go up so housing prices drop so defaults go up so the budget deficit grows while higher interest also raises the debt payment even more …. as we slide down the abyss.
But we still get to fight in Afghanistan and Libya!!
Bombing our way to financial Debtmageddon!
Very interesting article on the (impending) Debtmageddon:
http://lewrockwell.com/north/north1014.html
As long as the bi-factional ruling parties define “not increasing spending as much as they planned to” as cuts, you know that none of them are remotely serious about the budget.
The leaders of both Parties (McC., Boner, Pelosi, Reid) are all personally invested (P. raked in $20 mil from the bailouts) in the same DebtPonzi. They’ll ride it to the bitter end, and so will we. Then, those of us so inclined will go hunting.
Myron, Thank You for the LINK…I just read it and sent it to a friend as well.
I recommend it and I also recommend that everyone read, yes a fictional novel, “ONE SECOND AFTER” by William R. Forstchen – farout, ONLY IF YOU BELIEVE NO FOREIGN COUNTRIES ARE HACKING OUR SYSTEMS WITH GOOD INTENTIONS. See Drudge today re London riots, Wisconsin State Fair problems, and other wonderful stories. Oh, if you haven’t already, read a book titled, “INTO THE CANNIBAL’S POT”.
We’re in one hell of a mess and I’m concerned it will get much worse – are you?
we should cut spending, drastically. We don’t need to raise taxes. We need to cut taxes, and government over-regulations on our lives and businesses and see if the system won’t rebound and grow the economy. I know I sound like an over simplifying clod, but that’s what I am.