THYME Magazine

Citizen Journalism with a Better Flavor


Volume III, Issue XXXIX

Special Money Issue

The federal government will take in $2.173 trillion in 2011. That’s their income, and it sounds pretty good. Until, that is, you factor in that the federal government will spend $3.818 trillion during the year. So, just like many families, the government’s outgo exceeds their income—to the tune of $1.645 trillion in overspending. That’s called the deficit. Altogether, the government has $14.2 trillion in debt. According to the MSM though, we're making 'serious' budget cuts to address the problem head on. Here are the actual numbers:

US Tax Revenue: $2,170,000,000,000
Federal Budget: $3,820,000,000,000
New Debt: $1,650,000,000,000
National Debt: $14,271,000,000,000
Recent Budget Cut: $38,500,000,000

Now, in the spirit of Rush Limbaugh, let's make the complex understandable. Simply divide all the big numbers by one hundred million (remove eight zeros) and think of it as a household budget:



Now it starts to make sense, right?

L. Randall Wray of the Roosevelt Institute argues that you cannot compare the Federal budget to a household budget, largely basing his assumptions on the mass of the United States economy. As India and China continue to grow, however, Wray's assertions seem less convincing.

The current situation in Greece and Europe would seem to underscore the old agage: "If your outgo exceeds your income, then your upkeep will be your downfall."