If you think the $16 trillion national debt is bad, wait until you hear what the number is for unfunded liabilities like Social Security and Medicare.The Democrats are insisting on tax increases for the rich in order to avoid the fiscal cliff. They also refuse to even discuss doing anything about Medicare and Social Security even though those are the two big elephants in the room.
The actual liabilities of the federal government—including Social Security, Medicare, and federal employees’ future retirement benefits—already exceed $86.8 trillion, or 550% of GDP. For the year ending Dec. 31, 2011, the annual accrued expense of Medicare and Social Security was $7 trillion. Nothing like that figure is used in calculating the deficit. In reality, the reported budget deficit is less than one-fifth of the more accurate figure.
Why haven’t Americans heard about the titanic $86.8 trillion liability from these programs? One reason: The actual figures do not appear in black and white on any balance sheet. But it is possible to discover them. Included in the annual Medicare Trustees’ report are separate actuarial estimates of the unfunded liability for Medicare Part A (the hospital portion), Part B (medical insurance) and Part D (prescription drug coverage).
As of the most recent Trustees’ report in April, the net present value of the unfunded liability of Medicare was $42.8 trillion. The comparable balance sheet liability for Social Security is $20.5 trillion. (Read More)
550% of GDP! This is insanity, yet all we hear from the Democrats is that they can tax the top 2% more and make everything better.
Update: Linked by No One Of Any Import – thanks!
[...] If You Think $16 Trillion National Debt Is Bad, Wait Until You Hear Cost Of Unfunded Liabilities Like Social Security & Medicare [...]
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Can’t cut entitlements! Might lose votes…………. Demonize the rich instead. Yeah, that’ll do the trick.
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550% of GDP, and 110% of GLOBAL GDP.
Every US man, woman, and child each owes a third of a million dollars in unfunded liabilities and total national debt right now.
We are the most bankrupt country in the history of Earth. The American experiment will be over within your lifetime, if not within a generation.
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Stop spending money. Cut back on entitlements. The mentality in Washington is that there is always more money, we can give it to solve this problem. This whole goverment is running a giant Ponzi scheme. Raising the debt limit is just an absurd exercise in denial. You can’t borrow your way out of debt!
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[...] If You Thought $16 Trillion National Debt Was Bad – Lonely Conservative [...]
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Pf, they stole the election to keep the whole mockery going. Look, Pelosi just said they offered up a trillion, now where’s our tax hikes?
The fat lady’s running through scales in the back room. Hedge accordingly, if you can afford to.
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[...] though: QE3? More bubbles on the horizon? The possibility of hyperinflation? Unfunded liabilities of 86.8 trillion dollars? The examples could go on [...]
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