I get the humor of this, but isn't it a fallacy to think of the debt of nations in the same way we think of individual debt?
There's more than a kernel of truth in it probably, but the debt of nations is bound up in the purchase of treasuries. If I buy $millions in T-bills, the US owes me $millions even if we're running a budget surplus. So large debt can also be related to the perceived stability of a currency, I think. And then there's the wild card of how much currency is created.
But I'm no economist, so feel free to straighten me out on this if need be.
Brilliant.
ReplyDeleteHow am I supposed to bail out Joe if Jay can't pay the money to me because he's owed by Eric? Bastardonomics.
ReplyDeleteI get the humor of this, but isn't it a fallacy to think of the debt of nations in the same way we think of individual debt?
ReplyDeleteThere's more than a kernel of truth in it probably, but the debt of nations is bound up in the purchase of treasuries. If I buy $millions in T-bills, the US owes me $millions even if we're running a budget surplus. So large debt can also be related to the perceived stability of a currency, I think. And then there's the wild card of how much currency is created.
But I'm no economist, so feel free to straighten me out on this if need be.