A Nation Addicted to Oil -- and Debt
The United States is addicted to oil, President Bush warned Americans last week in his State of the Union address.
But what's likely to hurt us more in the long run — our addiction to oil or our addiction to debt?
The oil addiction we share with the rest of the planet. Debt addiction isn't our issue alone among major nations, but as the world's biggest economy our fearless embrace of debt in recent years has created risks that are global in scope.
We can cut back on oil consumption. Even if we stop borrowing tomorrow, however, our outstanding debt still must be repaid or refinanced.
And those bills will come due in the next 20 years concurrent with 79 million baby boomers reaching retirement age. In theory, at least, they're going to take more from the economy than they contribute, stretching already leveraged resources.
The problem with any discussion of U.S. debt levels is that the nation has largely become inured to the topic. Warnings about excessive debt have been a staple on Wall Street since the early 1980s. Yet stock and real estate prices have soared and interest rates have plunged since then.
http://tinyurl.com/8omgy
But what's likely to hurt us more in the long run — our addiction to oil or our addiction to debt?
The oil addiction we share with the rest of the planet. Debt addiction isn't our issue alone among major nations, but as the world's biggest economy our fearless embrace of debt in recent years has created risks that are global in scope.
We can cut back on oil consumption. Even if we stop borrowing tomorrow, however, our outstanding debt still must be repaid or refinanced.
And those bills will come due in the next 20 years concurrent with 79 million baby boomers reaching retirement age. In theory, at least, they're going to take more from the economy than they contribute, stretching already leveraged resources.
The problem with any discussion of U.S. debt levels is that the nation has largely become inured to the topic. Warnings about excessive debt have been a staple on Wall Street since the early 1980s. Yet stock and real estate prices have soared and interest rates have plunged since then.
http://tinyurl.com/8omgy
posted by Oil Shock at 2:24 PM
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