Compare debt to family income

We hear about the “billions” and “trillions” of dollars spent/cut/borrowed, and it’s very hard to put into perspective. There are simply too many zeros, and the numbers are becoming meaningless.

Our national economic situation can be better understood if we reduce the dollars down proportionally to that of a typical family household. So that we can relate to what our president inherited, let’s assume we were on one of those TV reality shows where spouses switch and we suddenly find ourselves in an economic situation that we didn’t create, but we have to live with: On Day 1, you find yourself where family income is $100,000 a year and every dime and more is spent. Debt for this family is $450,000.

After two years (when one party controls government), income is about level, but spending is now up to $162,000 a year with debt jumping to $630,000 because of some emergencies like “Cash for Clunkers” and the “Stimulus Program” that haven’t done anything to lower unemployment or jump start the economy. To “pay” for this, $170 a day for two years has been borrowed.

When seen in terms that most of us can relate to, the only conclusion one can make is that a bad situation has only become worse.

Just like on TV, our president gets to go back home after his stint in the spotlight leaving a mess in his wake, and hopefully like the TV families, we’ll have a renewed appreciation for our real family.

Keith Gray

Mettawa