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Ten Trillion and Counting

The journey begins as FRONTLINE correspondent Forrest Sawyer takes viewers to a secret location: the Treasury’s debt auction room, where the U.S. government sells securities backed by the “full faith and credit of the United States.” On this day, the government is auctioning $67 billion of Treasury securities. The money borrowed will be used to fund services and programs that the government cannot pay for through tax revenues alone.

Observers warn that the United States’ reliance on borrowing to fund essential programs is a dangerous gamble. For the first time, investors are beginning to question the ability of federal government to meet its growing financial obligations, and fading confidence can have dire consequences. “You might have a situation where there is one day when the government says we need to sell several billion dollars of bonds, and nobody shows,” Economist reporter Greg Ip says. “No money to pay the Social Security checks, no money to give to the states for their Medicaid programs. Cut, cut, cut, cut, cut.”

Yet more borrowing is exactly what the Obama administration plans to do: hundreds of billions to bail out the banks and other financial institutions; tens of billions more for the auto industry; $275 billion for homeowners and mortgage lenders; and a giant $787 billion stimulus package to jump-start an economy spiraling downward. Just like the Bush administration before it, Obama and his team are going to borrow big.

“That’s the paradox of the situation that we’re in now,” observes Matt Miller, author of The Tyranny of Dead Ideas. “Government has got to run big deficits to stimulate the economy, deficits that would have been unthinkable … because government’s the only entity with the wherewithal to prop up a demand in the economy when businesses and consumers are all pulling back.”

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  1. Laughed so hard I almost dropped my glass of wine!

    Dirty american morons have rammed their own economy so far up their own *sses, they are sh*tting dollars!

    Big LOL!

    One day, when america wakes up to the Chinese deciding that world trade between the BRICs should be in local currencies and/or commodity swaps and the need for the usdollar in inter-BRIC trade ends, the usa will be on the road to paying for its imported oil in a REAL currency instead of the joke toilet paper it currently uses…

    … OH DEAR, america!
    The BRIC nations already decided that in the last week of March 2012!

    G**gle it!

    LOL! Have fun in that 3rd world, americ*nts!

    • LOL, you wish 🙂 As screwed up as our economy is (and you might wanna turn on the news to, you know, see how the rest of the world has been doing lately in that department), we’ll be fine in the long run and remain powerful along with many other countries. Your superiority complex is pathetic. I’ll share this with you too: I’m sick of the childish “Just another ignorant (fat, lazy, stupid,
      etc) American” bullshit that Europeans peddle. Grow up. We are
      intelligent, hard working human beings like anyone else. Yes our
      country has incredible flaws and so do yours. Generalizing a massive
      population of people while looking down your noses at them and calling
      them ethnocentric, arrogant and guilty of stereotyping other cultures?
      Can you say hypocrisy?

  2. More than a little bit one sided

  3. Frontline and PBS for failed to mention ANYTHING about the Federal Reserve.  They only briefly reference it as “A building down the street from the White House.”

    Debates about Democrats, Republicans including financial weathermen such as economists become COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT to the solution when you learn about the Federal Reserve. 

    The Federal Reserve is a PRIVATE BANK and NOT a FEDERAL institution whatsoever. When the US Government needs money, it doesn’t need to ring the bells of citizens to get it.  No, they just contact the Federal Reserve and suddenly money for such things as wars, pet projects and resources is just suddenly there for them to spend as they please.

    The Federal Reserve also has 0 accountability, cannot be audited and is secretive in every way possible.  Both Democrats and Republicans participate in this massive fraud and the banking elite reward them in every way possible for their participation.

    So when organizations like PBS tell you that Americans want a decadent lifestyle but do not want to pay taxes for it, REJECT THIS LIE IMMEDIATELY.  When they tell you a Democrat or Republican will help or hurt the economy REJECT THIS LIE IMMEDIATELY.

    Here are two docs that can help you better understand the history of the Federal Reserve and the IRS.

    How the FED works.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AzdQNKkonc&feature=related

    Close examination of the IRS:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUpZhhbKUBo

    Take in the information and then you decide rather than letting PBS confuse and blur the real problems here. 

    • What utter nonsense. This is what happens when your entire knowledge base is gleaned from (poor) internet research. I wish there were more “private” banks that gave their profits to the government and had governors appointed by Congress, LOL. Kids today! *shakes head*

  4. Typical PBS… Doesn’t go anywhere near far enough in terms of a critical analysis of the whole situation. I don’t care if you’re just looking at the last 10 years -you’ve completely missed the role of the Federal Reserve as a private institution continuing to rape (and I don’t use that word lightly) the American people. The Fed controls the presidency no matter who is in control

    Have a read of ‘Modern Money Matters’ (the key textbook in understanding the American economy) and have a thorough look into Zeitgeist: Addendum, The Money Masters and and the Esoteric Agenda. Watch some Max Keiser and have a good listen to just about anything Ron Paul says and you will have a much better understanding of the current American economic situation and the reasons behind the impending hyperinflation and unavoidable economic collapse.

    While their criticisms of Bush’s fiscal, military and political insanity are correct, they’re not going deep enough into the “why’s”… Bush knocked down the towers, the government knew about it (this has been proven time and again now) and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were always going to be pushed through for their geo-strategic and economic advantages (oil and opium namely), as well as having the distinct political advantage of mustering public support (at least initially) whilst being able to tighten government control over the people (Patriot Acts I and II and FEMA). And now we’re seeing it again in Libya and Syria (and people still can’t see it). The Fed wants this economy to collapse and has designed it this way from its inception. Federal Income Tax goes 100% straight to the debt owed to the Federal Reserve -The Fed makes money when the economy collapses (by being in the right stocks and bonds at the right time (they know when to do what because they control Wall St) and by hedging their bets that the economy will collapse) and then they buy up all the stock for next to nothing. And when the new economy is built, guess who owns the disproportionate share of the wealth from day 1?? The Fed. And the rich-as bankers.

    PBS tends to be a ‘publicly-funded’ way of allowing corporate propaganda to tout itself as independent investigation and journalism, asking questions -but not the right ones and not to the right people. They’re asking light questions of people who give propagandised answers, and then the journalists simply accept these answers as truth. It’s a pity too because they really could be shedding so much light on the reality of things. Not really worth watching in all honesty -just more fascist propaganda pretending to be investigative journalism. Plus, the situation is WAY worse than what they’re reporting. The American national debt is much larger than this by now and they’re not even taking into account the Medicare/Medicaid and social security debts, let alone any other bubbles attached to the fiat currency that isn’t even secured by gold or silver any more. It’s just paper and digital debt.

    Oh, and Obama can’t fix this -he’s in power just to do the opposite. Watch the Obama Deception etc and you’ll see why.

  5. Here is the bottom line,

    This country is fucked if we this mess keeps going at this rate!

  6. Here is the bottom line,

    This country is fucked if we this mess keeps going at this rate!

  7. Forntline does it again. Brilliant documentary showing the insanity and delusion of the US system for the past 10years. The Bush administration oversaw the greatest downturn in US wealth in history with a combination of tax cuts (for the rich) while embarking on multiple war fronts. Raw stupidity.

    • @ Psinet I guess the rest of the world will have to bend over and grab their ankles cus if they think we are going to stop P.R.I.N.T.I.N.G money and pay our debts lol they are out of their fkn minds.  We dont even plan to pay our debts to our own people and they are our armed neighbors,  why would the rest of the world ever dream of America paying/ not QES’n $hit tons of dollars from the fed res to keep the world flush with worthless dollars.  When the rest of the world thinks they are getting screwed for long enough they can come collect in my neighborhood cus the only thing the american goverment fears is its own people and they will turn our forien creditors in to crispy critters befor they pay any debts with non QES bank notes.  The rest of the of the world just better keep the tribute (loans) coming.  Remember Psinet America is the LEADER OF THE WORLD (RULER) we hold the “FIRE” alone and if we fail we will be damn sure to cook all our creditors since to lose would surely bring no quarter to our neighborhood and our people.  Now you go back to TDC cus i dont care to hear your bellachin, whinnin, nit pickin about how America is telling the rest of the world how they are going to get everything they derserve soon.  You have a great day Psinet you sould take some time to enjoy paradise before it eludes you for ever Psinet.

    • @ Psinet I guess the rest of the world will have to bend over and grab their ankles cus if they think we are going to stop P.R.I.N.T.I.N.G money and pay our debts lol they are out of their fkn minds.  We dont even plan to pay our debts to our own people and they are our armed neighbors,  why would the rest of the world ever dream of America paying/ not QES’n $hit tons of dollars from the fed res to keep the world flush with worthless dollars.  When the rest of the world thinks they are getting screwed for long enough they can come collect in my neighborhood cus the only thing the american goverment fears is its own people and they will turn our forien creditors in to crispy critters befor they pay any debts with non QES bank notes.  The rest of the of the world just better keep the tribute (loans) coming.  Remember Psinet America is the LEADER OF THE WORLD (RULER) we hold the “FIRE” alone and if we fail we will be damn sure to cook all our creditors since to lose would surely bring no quarter to our neighborhood and our people.  Now you go back to TDC cus i dont care to hear your bellachin, whinnin, nit pickin about how America is telling the rest of the world how they are going to get everything they derserve soon.  You have a great day Psinet you sould take some time to enjoy paradise before it eludes you for ever Psinet.

      • Just another ignorant American…

      • Just another ignorant American…

        • I’m so sick of the childish “Just another ignorant (fat, lazy, stupid, etc) American” bullshit that Europeans peddle. Grow up. We are intelligent, hard working human beings like anyone else. Yes our country has incredible flaws and so do yours. Generalizing a massive population of people while looking down your noses at them and calling them ethnocentric, arrogant and guilty of stereotyping other cultures? Can you say hypocrisy?

      • Just another ignorant American…

      • wow there really are some weirdos around. You and vcx should hang out in jail sometime.

        Print all the “money” you want. Maybe you can find a way to eat it or somehow gasify it for your cars. Coz that’s about all its worth.

        The glaring truth you fail to perceive is that without the rest of the world to lend you money or buy your junk – you are finished.

        And hence – you are finished. I feel sorry for the decent people in your country.

        You can’t even overthrow a bunch of opium farmer peasants – let alone “make crispy critters” of China. I wouldn’t be suprised if they are just watching your fall, and will move in and claim your country for the cost of what you owe them – once your tantrums and convulsions are over.

      • wow there really are some weirdos around. You and vcx should hang out in jail sometime.

        Print all the “money” you want. Maybe you can find a way to eat it or somehow gasify it for your cars. Coz that’s about all its worth.

        The glaring truth you fail to perceive is that without the rest of the world to lend you money or buy your junk – you are finished.

        And hence – you are finished. I feel sorry for the decent people in your country.

        You can’t even overthrow a bunch of opium farmer peasants – let alone “make crispy critters” of China. I wouldn’t be suprised if they are just watching your fall, and will move in and claim your country for the cost of what you owe them – once your tantrums and convulsions are over.

      • wow there really are some weirdos around. You and vcx should hang out in jail sometime.

        Print all the “money” you want. Maybe you can find a way to eat it or somehow gasify it for your cars. Coz that’s about all its worth.

        The glaring truth you fail to perceive is that without the rest of the world to lend you money or buy your junk – you are finished.

        And hence – you are finished. I feel sorry for the decent people in your country.

        You can’t even overthrow a bunch of opium farmer peasants – let alone “make crispy critters” of China. I wouldn’t be suprised if they are just watching your fall, and will move in and claim your country for the cost of what you owe them – once your tantrums and convulsions are over.