Is Greece a preview of what's to come for the U.S.?
From Jack Cafferty, CNN
The United States is on its way to being Greece one day, and no one wants to acknowledge it.
Our national debt increased by more than $200 billion in October alone.
That comes out to $650 for every man, woman and child in this country.
The U.S. debt is now at more than $14.9 trillion … and likely will top a staggering $15 trillion by the end of November.
The congressional “super committee” is trying to cut $1.2 trillion over 10 years. That's not even a drop in the bucket - and lawmakers are still whining about how hard it is.
The whole idea that the federal government is in any way serious about the national debt is a joke. Even after America's credit rating was downgraded, our leaders continue to spend money at an unsustainable rate.
And, if they don't get serious - and very soon - you only need to take a look at Greece for a glimpse of our future.
The Greek government is on the verge of collapse in the wake of its debt crisis.
The euro and European banks have been thrown into crisis by Greece's debt and by Prime Minister George Papandreou's actions.
First, Papandreou announced there would be a referendum vote on the European bailout - and now he says there won't. Meanwhile, his government might vote him out of power Friday.
Greece has been holding the world hostage because Papandreou's government doesn't have the stones to make the tough decisions.
Sounds kind of like the politicians here who don't have the stones to tell the American people the party is over and it's time to pay the tab.
Here's my question to you: Is Greece a preview of what's to come for the U.S.?
Tune in to "The Situation Room" at 4 p.m. ET to see if Jack reads your answer on the air.
And we'd love to know where you're writing from, so please include your city and state with your comment.
What lessons should U.S. take away from Greece?
A youth spray paints "I will burn you" in Greek on the ground near a line of riot police in Athens. (PHOTO CREDIT: LOUISA GOULIAMAKI/AFP/Getty Images)
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
If the fires and riots in Greece don't get Washington's attention, my guess is a 1,000-point drop in the stock market this afternoon might.
In less than an hour, the Dow Jones industrial average went from down a couple of hundred - to down almost 1,000 points - before rebounding.
The panic was triggered in part by Greece.
Greece is a world-class welfare state… People retire in their 50s and are accustomed to government handouts at every turn. Now the Greek government says "we're going to have to cut back," and people go crazy.
Here in the U.S. we have a growing welfare state: Food stamps, aid to dependent children, unemployment insurance, Medicaid, rent subsidies, welfare and millions of illegal aliens.
We have a $12 trillion debt that we're unable to pay. And while it ain't gonna happen tomorrow… at some point, we're going to be faced with the realization that we can't do it this way anymore. Something's gotta give.
When that day comes there will be cuts. Drastic, Draconian cuts.
Whether it leads to the kind of things we're seeing in Greece is probably a stretch. And we don't know that yet, but suffice it to say that when they start cutting… it's gonna make a lot of people unhappy.
The real tragedy is it's preventable. But no one in Washington has the guts to confront this issue head on.
It's the ultimate act of selfishness and betrayal: We are literally destroying the lives of Americans who haven't been born yet. Our children, our grandchildren and generations to come will suffer the effects of our irresponsible fiscal policy.
Look at Athens. Look at Washington. Do the math.
Here’s my question to you: What lessons should the U.S. take away from what’s happening in Greece?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
@jackcafferty on Twitter
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