Well, CharlesCS, you're not actually 1500.0 dollars in debt. In fact, you're more like 35,000.0 dollars in debt, on top of whatever else you owe.
whaa?
That's the cost of the 10.5 trillion U.S debt divided by 300 million. So, every single man, woman and child in the U.S, whether they be unemployed or not, owes at least $ 35,000.0
That means if you have a family of 4, you owe $ 140,000.
"But hold on there, over the years I've paid waaaay more than $ 35,000 in taxes!!!"
Yes, you may have but that money didn't go towards the debt. That's why it's called debt. The government spent it when they didn't have it. By the time all is said and done almost 3 trillion will have been spent on Iraq, Afghanistan and other overseas military adventures. How did this situation develop?
Well, back in the early days of his first term, Bush pushed through some pretty substantial tax cuts that effectively reduced government income.
For the record, Clinton handed Bush a 127 billion surplus, which Bush has managed to turn into 10 trillion in debt!!!! Kinda happens when you reduce income (cutting taxes) and at the same time, INCREASE spending. Ya know. You need all those nuclear submarines and F-35 fighter jets to hunt down Bin Laden. Oooops, haven't got him yet, nevermind.
Now don't get me wrong, I'm all for cutting taxes. But to decrease your revenue while increase your spending? Well that's just downright fiscally irresponsible!!!
Don't worry though, you won't have to pay your 35,000 in debt (that number will probably increase over time too)
Your children, and possibly their children may be the ones saddled with it.