August 30, 2007 at 18:17:10

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AMERICA BROKE / AVERAGE HOUSEHOLD OWES 112,000 / RECESSION HERE

By Allen L Roland (about the author)

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For OpEdNews: Allen L Roland - Writer

There comes a time when we must stop wishful thinking and face economic reality and that time is now ~ America is broke, the U.S. economy is already in a recession and it's going to get worse before it gets better: Allen L Roland

America is already in a recession and the U.S. Government is flat broke to the extent of 8.9 trillion dollars. In other words, every man, woman and child in America owes $29,672 dollars in Government debt.

Beware of Monopoly Money!
by Larry Edelson

The U.S. Federal Government Is Flat Broke!

As I write this, the total federal debt stands at $8,985,362,378,553.90. That's $8.985 TRILLION.

Put another way, every man, woman and child in the U.S owes $29,672.26!

What's more, the debt has been rising to the tune of $1.44 billion every day since September 2006. That's $60 million per hour!

This is a disaster in the making by any measure. And it's going to get worse. In fact, that's probably why Washington officially upped the country's national debt limit to $9.815 trillion a few months ago.

By the way, not counted in the above figures are Washington's contingent liabilities such as future social security payments, Medicare, and government pensions. Add all those IOUs together and you have a Federal debt quagmire that's approaching $55 TRILLION.

In short, the U.S. is the most indebted country on the planet. It's a grim fact that we are now starting to face … and will continue to face, courtesy of the real estate and mortgage market meltdowns.

The average American citizen is dealing with a lot of debt right now …

And let's not forget that …

American Consumers Have
Their Own Mountains of Debt

The average U.S. household owes $112,043 for mortgages, credit cards, car loans, and all other debt. Meanwhile, the average personal savings rate is a mere 0.6%.

Yes, the average citizen has other assets at their disposal. Chiefly, real estate. And as long as home prices were rising, it was okay.

But now that prices are falling — and mortgage money is becoming tighter — it's fair to say that the day of reckoning is coming home to roost for the average American citizen.

The debts will overpower the assets, and a wave of incredible home foreclosures and personal bankruptcies will come crashing down over their heads.

As if that's not bad enough …

The U.S. Economy Is
Already in a Recession

You won't hear that from most Wall Street gurus. And Washington certainly won't state it, either. But the U.S. economy is already sinking fast.

Two simple figures tell the story:

2007 Estimated Gross Domestic Product: 2.7%

LESS …

2007 Estimated Consumer Price Inflation: 2.7%

= Net Real Economic Growth: 0.00%

And that's based on the government's manipulated figures for inflation!

Allen L Roland

http://blogs.salon.com/0002255/2007/08/30.html

Freelance columnist Allen L  Roland is available for comments , interviews  and speaking engagements  ( allen@allenroland.com ) 

 

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