something worth writing

News broke Friday afternoon that Standard and Poor’s downgraded the United States’ prized AAA credit rating, the first downgrade since our AAA rating was established in 1941.  The move is directly attributed to U.S. lawmakers’ apparent inability to govern functionally.  Now with a AA-plus rating, the interest on our debt will increase and this crisis may be even more daunting of a feat to overcome. 

Of course, the news broke just over two days before the market will open again on Monday morning, and I’ve been seeing very mixed reactions and speculation in the media as to what will happen next week.  S&P also hinted that another downgrade for us may be on its way within the next 10-18 months.

It’s a very dark, scary and complex crisis involving all of our money, so I don’t think it’s out of the question to anticipate some level of panic to elevate on Monday morning.  Some fear that people will rush to the banks like they did in the 1930s, and stash all their cash under their mattresses. 

Of course since then, we’ve established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, (FDIC) which insures up to $250,000 for members’ account holders.  But if some sort of panic-fueled nation-wide withdrawal goes down next week, I’m not sure if the federal government is in any position to follow through with that assurance.  I realize that it’s still a pretty far-out-there doomsday scenario, but no one can deny that the possibility of it actually happening again has never been more real than it is today.

This problem is huge, and it’s so much bigger than President Obama or President Bush or any Congress in between.  This problem is a living manifestation of the dysfunctional economic psyche that’s been festering deep within our culture for decades.  That’s ultimately where the change has to come from if our country’s going to make it out of this. 

Our lawmakers’ lust for spending trillions of dollars that the country doesn’t have is no different than the way most Americans live their very own lives.  The average American consumed with more than $10,000 in debt as it is.  While it’s not trillions, that’s still a lot of money for any individual. 

So, if there are any TEA partiers out there with a dime of debt, please pack your things and go home, you whiney hypocrite.  There is no way every single one of these people armed with tri-cornered hats, Obama Hitler monkey signs and lawn chairs are all debt-free.  But I digress…

We’re all hypocrites.  Well, the ones of us who are in debt, (myself included) if we’re also outraged by the rate federal government spending.  They are elected representations of us, and that’s how our system works.  If anything, you’ve got to really hand it to members Congress for representing their constituencies so accurately - at least in regards to this particular issue. 

How can we expect our elected representatives to change if we’re not willing to change ourselves?  We have to, if we want to survive this.  And kudos to those of you who are living debt-free.  Pointers are always welcome to the rest of us.  We’re going to need all the help we can get. 

Despite the pessimistic overtones of this post, I do have optimism for this country, still.  It helps to know that we’re literally to big to fail, of course.  We may or may not soon see how that holds true.  But I also have faith in my fellow Americans, in that someday, we can all change the way we handle our money in a way that adapts successfully to our rapidly, ever-changing way of life. 

We have to realize that borrowing money for anything other than a house (that we can reasonably afford!!) is absolutely unnecessary.  We need to realize that it is in our best personal interest to pay in-full, up-front for everything else.  It may sound crazy to some, but it’s going to have to take drastic changes like that, and many more to the way we handle our personal finances, if we expect our government to operate the same way. 

Much of my optimism lies in my generation.  We’ve grown up completely different from our parents and every generation that came before them.  The biggest thing that sets us apart is the Internet.  To simply say we “grew up with it,” doesn’t do our functional relationship with the Internet justice.  We were young, but just old enough to explore its endless wealth of information while it was young in its early days of regular household computers.  It advanced even more rapidly than we suddenly became adults, and we did so right along side one another.  And it’s clear, that like my generation, the Internet’s best days still lie ahead of it, despite whatever economic woes currently loom overhead.

We all have the information of the world at our fingertips and Google in our pockets.  The smart ones, and there are many, will continue to utilize these great tools that we continue to grow up with to help make this world, and primarily, this country, a much better place to live.  If I have faith in anything, it’s the ability of my generation to rise from the rubble of this failed and flawed system that the previous generations created for us, and truly live to be the greatest generation this nation has ever seen. 

“Compromise” is a big part what we’ve told this debt ceiling debate has been about all along, right?  Please tell me I’m not the only one that sees that despite lawmakers’ claims of wanting to work together on this, neither side is bending.  Or… compromising.  Except the Democrats, of course.  They took it leaps and bounds further, but that’s not what I want to talk about right now. 

The liberal blogosphere and left-wing opinion media, which I observe but not necessarily follow, has been crying out all along that programs such as Medicare and Social Security are not to be touched during this deal.  Meanwhile, any conservative with a platform has been just as loud with their opposition to any revenue increases, tax hikes, decrease in spending to directly benefit billionaires, what-have-you.

My point is, as far as the national discourse goes regarding this issue, I’m not seeing anyone bringing up real compromises and real plans to bring about real solutions.  It may not be easy, but in order for this to work at all, both sides are going to have to give. 

My idea:

Let’s both let go of our stubborn ideals for one moment and do what’s best for this nation.  Let’s make some serious cuts in our outrageously huge Medicare and Social Security budget, as well as discontinue the Bush Tax Cuts for the wealthy.  Both sides will get exactly what they both want and don’t want.  They’ll be upset, for a while, but our nation, in the long run will prosper. 

Am I getting dementia or was President Obama’s entire premise of this years State of the Union Address based on “Investing in our future,” and “Winning the future?”  Fuck that noise about building high speed railways (is anyone actually still working on that?) and let’s really invest in our future by making some serious cuts to programs like Medicare and Social Security, which is putting a huge burden on my generation that’s already been burdened with enough.  It sounds grim, but I believe that while our senior citizens are national treasures and an irreplaceable first-hand link to our history, they are not our future.  My generation is.  If they haven’t gotten their finances in order during the nearly five decades of adulthood they had prior to reaching retirement age, I don’t understand why that responsibility falls on us.  It’s time to invest in our generation, and invest in the future. 

We also need to stop catering to the wealthiest in this nation if we are all to survive this thing.  Taxes for the top two percent haven’t been better since the 1950s, and as long as every member of Congress and the White House are bowing down to the TEA party’s every demand, then it’s likely they’ll stay that way for the foreseeable future.  They’ve had their Bush Tax Cuts for over half a decade, but unemployment is still drastically high.  What more do these “job creators” need?  It’s time for the TEA party to be recognized for what it is - nothing but a bunch of poor, misguided sheep, following a movement fully funded by the Koch Brothers and other big corporations who have much at stake when it comes to keeping corporate taxes low.  Hell, all you have to do is tell these people the government wants to take their guns and turn their kids into homosexual socialists behind their backs, and Hallelujah Jesus Amen, they’re in. 

I haven’t done the math, because I don’t even know where to begin.  But I know enough to know that if we went after both of the big ticket items that neither side wants to give up on, then we’d all benefit in the long run.  And a lot sooner and more effectively, for that matter.  That’s what I think, at least.