Why Haven't US Had A Debt Crisis... Yet?

 

 Why Haven't US Had A Debt Crisis... Yet? 

https://youtu.be/mlc1_IYWMzk?si=TCjC4I7PabK8wtV0

 

 For as long as most of you have been alive, we have been told that federal debt is a major crisis just waiting to happen. 

For more than a quarter of a century at this point we have become very well acquainted with images of this debt clock, and the increasingly regular government shutdowns where they play hot potato with this ballooning hand grenade. 

 If all of that wasn’t annoying enough there is almost the uniform flip flop between politicians taking turns to be very concerned about “fiscal responsibility” depending on if they are in or out of power at that time. It’s a powerful message… but they do seem to forget about it pretty quickly once they are in office and fixing it would require actual sacrifice, and if we are being honest with ourselves, it’s almost easy to see where this indifference is coming from. 

We were told we were at an inflection point when we crossed 10 trillion dollars in debt, and then 20 trillion, and now we are approaching 40 trillion dollars in total debt or 130% of our GDP… 

The rate in which we are taking on new debt is also accelerating, almost half of all of our outstanding borrowing has been done in just the last 6 years… and yet… on the surface, you would be forgiven for thinking… not much has changed… 

And I don’t just mean that in the sense of “why haven’t we turned into Greece yet?” because this also raises a more important question… the government has spent 15 trillion dollars more than it has brought in through taxes in just the last half decade alone… so why don’t we “feel” 15 trillion dollars richer? When will this debt, actually become a problem?

  Why The U.S. Won’t Pay Down Its Debt 

 https://youtu.be/9yU_bVZqqYk?si=G5IqvIIrbZk0S7kC

 

 The U.S. national debt is nearly $33 trillion as of early September 2023. Every year since 2001, the U.S. government has spent more money than it takes in, which means it has to borrow money to make up for the difference. The national debt is frequently discussed as a danger to future generations, but some economists say there’s no reason to get the national debt down to zero. One reason for that is without the debt, there would be no federal government securities, such as Treasury bonds, which provide investors a safe place to park their money while accruing interest. Most economist warn, however, that there’s a balancing act when it comes to the national debt. Watch the video above to learn more about why the U.S. can’t get a handle on the national debt and whether it even has to.

The U.S. national debt is nearly $33 trillion as of early September 2023. Every year since 2001, the U.S. government has spent more money than it takes in, which means it has to borrow money to make up for the difference. The national debt is frequently discussed as a danger to future generations, but some economists say there’s no reason to get the national debt down to zero. One reason for that is without the debt, there would be no federal government securities, such as Treasury bonds, which provide investors a safe place to park their money while accruing interest. Most economist warn, however, that there’s a balancing act when it comes to the national debt. Watch the video above to learn more about why the U.S. can’t get a handle on the national debt and whether it even has to. The U.S. national debt is nearly $33 trillion as of early September 2023. Every year since 2001, the U.S. government has spent more money than it takes in, which means it has to borrow money to make up for the difference. The national debt is frequently discussed as a danger to future generations, but some economists say there’s no reason to get the national debt down to zero. One reason for that is without the debt, there would be no federal government securities, such as Treasury bonds, which provide investors a safe place to park their money while accruing interest. Most economist warn, however, that there’s a balancing act when it comes to the national debt. Watch the video above to learn more about why the U.S. can’t get a handle on the national debt and whether it even has to.
The U.S. national debt is nearly $33 trillion as of early September 2023. Every year since 2001, the U.S. government has spent more money than it takes in, which means it has to borrow money to make up for the difference. The national debt is frequently discussed as a danger to future generations, but some economists say there’s no reason to get the national debt down to zero. One reason for that is without the debt, there would be no federal government securities, such as Treasury bonds, which provide investors a safe place to park their money while accruing interest. Most economist warn, however, that there’s a balancing act when it comes to the national debt. Watch the video above to learn more about why the U.S. can’t get a handle on the national debt and whether it even has to.

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Why The U.S. Won’t Pay Down Its Debt

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Why The U.S. Won’t Pay Down Its Debt

每天近十亿逆差压顶 欧盟拟推“欧版301条款”反制中国补贴

 
每天近十亿逆差压顶 欧盟拟推“欧版301条款”反制中国补贴


（布鲁塞尔20日讯）欧盟领导人周四至周五在布鲁塞尔举行峰会，就对华贸易政策达成共识：虽然欧洲意识到对华贸易逆差还在加速，但目前将继续寻求与中国开展“建设性对话”，同时要求欧盟委员会研究并完善贸易防御工具。

近年来，中国低成本制造、政府补贴以及出口限制措施，引发欧盟对双方贸易失衡不断扩大的担忧。

一名欧盟官员表示，27个成员国一致认为，必须继续“与我们最重要的经济伙伴进行建设性对话”，“以捍卫我们的经济和安全利益”。这名官员同时强调，对话“必须取得成果”。

欧盟领导人还要求欧盟委员会继续研究贸易保护和产业政策领域的进一步措施，确保欧盟拥有“维护自身利益和降低风险所需的一切工具”。

欧盟拟扩大贸易防御工具

欧盟指责北京通过政府补贴，为本国企业创造不公平竞争优势。

作为回应，欧盟此前已对中国电动汽车加征关税，并出台规定，允许将获得过度补贴的企业排除在公共采购项目之外。

欧盟工业事务专员塞茹尔内（Stéphane Séjourné）希望进一步扩大这些工具的适用范围，包括赋予欧盟针对整个产业征收保护性关税的能力，例如针对化工、绿色科技等行业，而不仅限于单一产品。

外媒称这一设想被认为与美国总统特朗普依据《301条款》实施行业性关税的做法类似。法国总统马克龙上月曾呼吁建立“欧洲版301条款”，称欧洲的“主权正面临考验”。

据德国《商报》报道，欧盟委员会正在考虑对中国混合动力汽车征收反补贴税，作为进一步加强贸易防御措施的选项之一。相关措施的目标对象包括中国汽车制造商比亚迪、奇瑞和上汽集团生产的混合动力车型，拟通过加征额外关税，应对欧方认为存在的不公平竞争。

成员国立场仍有分歧

尽管欧盟内部越来越多国家认为，对中国的经济依赖程度过高，使欧盟更容易受到供应链冲击和经济胁迫，但成员国对于如何应对的问题上立场各异。

西班牙首相桑切斯在峰会前表示，欧洲需要保持务实态度。

他说：“我们需要朋友，需要平衡的关系，需要务实，同时也需要与主要经济体及潜在盟友（例如中国）建立沟通的桥梁。”

德国长期以来也主张较为谨慎的立场，原因在于其经济更容易受到中国反制措施的影响，德国企业仍将中国视为重要出口市场。

不过，一名德国官员表示，只要新工具并非针对特定国家，德国愿意对新的贸易防御机制持开放态度。

爱尔兰总理马丁则表示，希望首先了解任何新机制的具体形式，同时提醒欧盟必须充分评估其可能带来的后果。

德国总理默茨在布鲁塞尔未就中国问题回应记者提问。

欧中贸易逆差持续扩大

欧盟认为，当前贸易关系已越来越不可持续。数据显示，2025年欧盟对华货物贸易逆差约达3600亿欧元，中国对欧出口远高于欧盟对华出口。

布鲁塞尔多次强调，应确保公平竞争环境，并指出中国企业因获得大量政府补贴而拥有不公平优势。

根据经济合作与发展组织（OECD）数据，2005至2024年间，中国企业获得的政府支持规模约为经合组织成员国企业的三至八倍。经合组织表示，这一估算仍属“保守估计”。

西方国家对中国在稀土等关键矿产供应领域的主导地位也愈发担忧，这一议题本周同样出现在七国集团会议议程中。

欧盟谨慎避免全面贸易战

尽管欧盟强化贸易防御的态度正在趋于坚定，但各成员国普遍不希望与中国爆发更大范围的贸易战。欧盟对中国可能采取报复措施保持警惕。

2024年欧盟提高中国电动汽车关税后，中国随即对欧洲白兰地实施反倾销措施。

此外，如果欧盟通过新规，将欧盟以外地区生产的特定产品排除在公共采购合同之外，北京方面已誓言将采取反制措施。

因此欧盟仍希望通过对话避免局势升级。

欧盟委员会贸易和经济安全委员谢夫乔维奇（Maros Sefcovic）已邀请中国商务部长王文涛本月晚些时候访问布鲁塞尔，双方计划继续就经贸问题展开磋商。不过，欧盟官员尚未证实此次访问是否最终成行。

迫于美国施压 古巴通过近200项自由市场改革措施

迫于美国施压 古巴通过近200项自由市场改革措施

（哈瓦那20日讯）古巴国会议员19日通过了将近200项历史性的自由市场改革措施。

这些改革措施意在拯救古巴，以因应美国封锁石油行动而加剧的严重危机。

外媒报道，古巴总理马雷罗（Manuel Marrero）向国会发表演说，公布170多项削弱国家在经济中的角色并吸引投资之相关措施，牵涉领域涵盖银行业、旅游业与农业。

这些改革包括外国投资者不再需要跟国家成立合资公司，还有古巴和外国的投资人皆会被允许取得国有企业股份等措施。
在古巴哈瓦那，一辆汽车星期二经过路旁写有革命口号的广告板。（欧新社）

哈瓦那推出国家经济改革之际，华府正持续不断向古巴施加压力，美国总统特朗普先前更公开扬言，有意接管这个加勒比海岛国。

驻英国伦敦的古巴经济学家托拉尔巴斯形容，这些改革是1959年革命以来“最重大的”举措。

马雷罗没有给出实施改革的时间表，但古巴总统迪亚斯-卡内尔早前强调，国家需要“紧急改革”以避免经济崩溃。

特朗普政府今年1月起对古巴实施石油封锁，不仅让当地经济濒临崩溃，且迫使哈瓦那做出让步。

 

3月发生在伦敦戈尔德斯格林一系列针对犹太教堂和社区场所的纵火袭击事件。（图取自法新社档案照）

22国谴责伊朗是幕后黑手　策划攻击犹太社区和记者

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（悉尼11日讯）包括美国和欧洲国家在内的22个国家周四联合警告伊朗，要求其停止“在其领土上”发动攻击。伊朗安全部门因“令人发指”地利用国际和当地犯罪集团在欧洲、北美和澳洲策划攻击而受到谴责。

法新社报导，各国在一份联合声明中说：“企图在我国领土上杀害、绑架、骚扰、恐吓或以其他方式袭击人民，损害了国家主权和国际准则。这些行为必须立即停止。”

他们表示，伊朗伊斯兰革命卫队的情报部门及其海外行动分支“圣城旅”参与了针对伊朗异议人士、记者以及犹太人和以色列社区和利益的“致命阴谋和恶意行动”。

“我们团结一致，决心保护我们的国家和人民免受这些威胁。伊朗伊斯兰共和国必须立即停止这些行动。”

这些国家指责伊朗是欧洲一系列针对犹太社区、伊朗记者和美国记者袭击活动的幕后黑手，这些袭击活动已被与伊朗有关的组织“Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya”（简称HAYI）认领。

该组织声称对发生在英国、比利时和荷兰针对犹太社区的袭击事件负责。

据报导，HAYI表示对近几个月来在伦敦北部发生的两名犹太男子被刺伤事件以及一系列针对犹太教堂和社区场所的纵火袭击事件负责。

去年8月，澳洲驱逐了伊朗驻澳洲大使，指责德黑兰策划了至少两起反犹太袭击：一起是墨尔本一座犹太教堂的纵火案，另一起是悉尼一家犹太洁食咖啡馆的纵火案。

堪培拉方面也召回了澳洲驻伊朗大使，并暂停了驻德黑兰大使馆的运作。

11月，澳洲将伊朗伊斯兰革命卫队列为支持恐怖主义的国家，称其在澳洲境内发动的攻击是“外国在澳洲领土上策划史无前例且危险的侵略行为”。

伊朗外交部当时表示，澳洲的决定是“侮辱性的、毫无道理的行为”，违反了国际规则和准则。

这份声明由阿尔巴尼亚、澳洲、比利时、英国、保加利亚、加拿大、捷克、丹麦、爱沙尼亚、法国、芬兰、德国、爱尔兰、拉脱维亚、立陶宛、荷兰、纽西兰、北马其顿、挪威、葡萄牙、瑞典和美国共同发表。