What's the real federal deficit?

[Contrary1]

"The federal government keeps two sets of books. The set the government promotes to the public has a healthier bottom line: a $318 billion deficit in 2005.

The set the government doesn't talk about is the audited financial statement produced by the government's accountants following standard accounting rules. It reports a more ominous financial picture: a $760 billion deficit for 2005. If Social Security and Medicare were included — as the board that sets accounting rules is considering — the federal deficit would have been $3.5 trillion.

Congress has written its own accounting rules — which would be illegal for a corporation to use because they ignore important costs such as the growing expense of retirement benefits for civil servants and military personnel.

Last year, the audited statement produced by the accountants said the government ran a deficit equal to $6,700 for every American household. The number given to the public put the deficit at $2,800 per household..."

http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20060803/1a_coverart03.art_dom.htm

[MI Cherie]

1. It is out of control!

It's going up by the second!

http://www.uwsa.com/uwsa-usdebt.html

[meldroc]

2. Yikes... So what happens when (not if) the .gov can't make payments?

Eventually, the interest on the national debt will swallow up all of our tax revenue, and in order to keep services running (or keep the graft flowing), the government will start missing payments to its creditors, like when you or I run out of money and miss credit card payments.

Then, as things get worse, the .gov misses more & more payments to more & more creditors. What happens when the .gov declares bankruptcy?

We'll likely see effects on the world economy that'll make the Great Depression look like a speed bump...

[patricia92243]

3. We will raise Paris Hilton's taxes or lower my Social Security. I wonder

which it will be????