HOW THE DEFICIT AFFECTS YOU PERSONALLY

For quite some time the national deficit has been in the spotlight with good reason. The evening news presents how one president is cleaning up the prior president’s mess. A headline off a big city newspaper insinuates the law makers are rapidly increasing the deficit with the bills promoted for funding. One political party blames the other party’s agenda for the ever increasing deficit. And so it goes, and so it grows, every day. Obviously all the bickering and debating has not produced a lower national deficit.

What could change if the national deficit was viewed as each American’s personal budget problem? What if the deficit was my budget problem to fix?

First off, I doubt I can tackle the deficit without really knowing how deeply in the red I am. A quick click to the national debt clock http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/ and I am stunned. $12,001,214,040,172.38 as of this minute and rising! Write it down the current value with all the commas and let it sink in. My share to pay it off is over $39,000.00. The bliss of ignorance is gone and I can’t ignore the bottom line anymore.

I run through the list of quick fix options. Filing for bankruptcy is not viable as we do need the government functioning. Without the military our great nation would not be able to thwart a terrorist attack. Without police services crime rates would only increase. Other vital services are just that – vital. Messed up as it is, we need our government albeit revamped. Scratch bankruptcy as a fix.

Maybe a debt management service would be helpful. Perhaps they can negotiate with our bills for a better rate. Can you imagine a politician cutting their pay in half to give America the opportunity to catch up on her bills? Realistically, I don’t see that happening voluntarily as more than a few politicians, governors and presidents have filed bankruptcy themselves. Pay cuts will be required to stay balanced in the future, but again, negotiating the outstanding balance right now is not a cure for the deficit.

Taking up a fund or holding a benefit isn’t going to make the deficit disappear either. Foreclosures and personal bankruptcies are at an all time high, and 1 in 10 Americans are out of a job. If a magic wand is not to be found I must acknowledge this is indeed my debt.

Time to pay the piper

Now that I have faced the fact I am in debt up to my ears in debt it seems reasonable to find the hemorrhages and stop the bleeds. Granted this is a bit more complicated than making the household budget balance but it makes sense the same principles apply. Just because I want or can loosely justify a purchase or expenditure does not mean the budget will support it without serious consequences. Nor do I just legislate funds when unexpected bills show up on the budget radar. In these financial situations I must slow spending proportionately to stay in the black. What are the gaping wounds bleeding our nation?

Cash flow in

Let’s look at the cash flowing in to the budget. Companies and individuals pay many taxes to the government. Federal, state, local, and city taxes combined with sales and property taxes are painfully high and I for one can’t imagine paying more. All these tax funds should be well adequate to support our nation IF these are indeed being paid in.

Tax evasion is a huge problem in America. When I heard that 4,450 Americans were hiding an estimated 18 billion ($18,000,000.00) in Swiss accounts to evade taxation I was appalled. That is just in declaring income. When you add the fudging of those to reduce taxes due it continues to climb. What ever excuse is used to avoid paying taxes in should be considered robbery. If we don’t like the tax rates we should vote for change, but tax evasion affects the national deficit. Money is being spent for services to those who do not pay in as they should. Tax evasion is a wound bleeding the United States dry.

Cash flow out

Whether it is a household or government budget, spending beyond what you make will create a deficit. A deficit sustained for any period of time will only grow. Somewhere down the road a windfall or sacrifice must be made to correct the deficit to eliminate it. Our national deficit is no different.

Another point worth acknowledging is that expenses are subjective to the interests of the one making the expenditure. For instance, my desire to build a secure future for my family influences my spending to be frugal. Now if the children influenced the budget their short term wants would bankrupt their college funds and swiftly. Lobbyists and self serving interests in government are as much a hemorrhage as tax evaders. They have no conscience and have continued to bleed our country for years. For the same reasons I do not allow my kids to manipulate the home budget, lobbyists and the like must not be allowed to continue as they have.

In the same vein, our national budget should be handled by those who have a proven track record in maintaining finances in the black. Again, would you turn over your hard earned cash to an investor that just was found guilty of fraud? Or put your funds into a company that cheated its investors? Not hardly, but we have numerous politicians who have extensive discrepancies of their own. We need to vote in competent people as well as demand sound practices to derail the freight train of greed in our government.

The first step in fixing a problem is admitting there is a problem. Once denial is overcome and responsibility taken there is hope a solution can be found. With a dose of reality the likelihood of success increases. We need to get real and personal with the national deficit. It is not going away. As a matter of fact, check it again right now. http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/ to see how rapidly it increased during the time it took you to read this article.