Hey there, just wanted to point out that the National Debt is different from the US government's budget--the budget, during the Clinton years had a surplus. In other words, they had more money in government than they knew what to do with. The National Debt is the amount of money the US has borrowed to fuel its economy. Any cash you might have in your pocket technically has to be paid back to the Federal Reserve (including any money in your bank account). That's where the frighteningly huge number (approaching $9 trillion as I type this!) comes from. Yes, our economy, as I understand it, is based entirely on credit (debt).

In fact, just recently, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson asked Congress to vote to raise the borrowing cap because the USG will run out of operating funds on October 1, 2007. Yipes!

BUT THANK GEORGE WE'RE SAFE FROM AL QAEDA!

Not.