Billionaires' film targets national debt
If you think Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" was scary, wait until you see Warren Buffett and Pete Peterson's new movie.
"I.O.U.S.A." premieres today in 358 theaters nationwide, warning that our spiraling national debt is sentencing generations unborn with "economic problems that will make this year's financial turbulence look like a trip to the debt counselor's office," according to the Associated Press story announcing the film.
How much is the national debt?
No, it's not the horrendous figure -- $11 trillion -- that you usually hear. That number, a thousand times a thousand times a thousand times a thousand dollars times 11, covers only the publicly traded debt, government debt to employee pensions and the cost of environmental cleanup of federal land. About 25 percent of that debt is owned by foreign governments.
The rest of the debt amounts to Medicare and Social Security obligations the government can't yet meet, especially in light of the number of retiring baby boomers.
It's notable that the two sponsors sit on opposite ends of the political spectrum; Buffett supports Barack Obama while Peterson has endorsed John McCain. But both believe the national debt is enough of a problem that they're willing to stake their own reputations -- and Peterson $1 billion of his own money -- to raise awareness enough that something will be done.
Tragically, ears of irresponsible fiscal governance has left the United States in a precarious position.
So what's the answer? How about a balanced budget amendment, means testing for Social Security (paying benefits only to those who need them), and a national sales or value added tax dedicated strictly to reducing the national debt?
Someone probably has a better idea, or combination of ideas, and that's good. Let's hear your ideas.
But it's clear the national debt cannot be allowed to continue to accumulate.