How is is it that the official debt of the United States government has been frozen at $16,699,396,000,000.00 for over 70 days? The Secretary of the Treasury is not saying. He merely reports that this is the case. “Trust me.”
Congress is trusting him. The Media are trusting him. The voters are trusting him.
How does the U.S. government deal with an annual deficit of at least $600 billion, yet the official, on-budget debt does not change for over two months? Inquiring minds want to know.
Actually, they don’t want to know. This willingness to believe in miracles is part of the national pastime: “kick the can.”
This is the dance of the decimal points. It is an intricate dance, indeed.
I can see Ph.D. dissertations in accounting or economics being written on this remarkable statistical achievement. If the U. S. government can achieve this, why not state and local governments? Why not multinational corporations? Why not you?
It is not just that the Treasury announces this miracle. It is that no one asks “How is this possible?” No one wants to know. Not really. Kicking the can is so much easier.
But how long can this go on? The fiscal year ends on September 30. Can this go on beyond that date? If so, then the government has solved the problem of the national debt. Don’t report it.
My assumption is simple: the government lies. That is default mode for governments. What fascinates me is not the lying. Far more interesting is the public’s willingness to accept such lies as valid. “Keep it up! We like it!”
“We the people” live in terms of government lies. Government lies are a way of life. The longer the lying goes on, the better “We the people” like it. They say they don’t, but they obviously do. Do you think I’m wrong? I’ll bet you $16,699,396,000,000.00 I’m right.