Dixie - In Memoriam
New member
Can some pinhead answer me this... what purpose does the debt ceiling serve, if every time we reach it, we raise it? Do any of you have a rational explanation?
Can some pinhead answer me this... what purpose does the debt ceiling serve, if every time we reach it, we raise it? Do any of you have a rational explanation?
So why do we have one, pinhead? And why does it matter what we do with it?
I cannot think of a single good reason why we have one.
It matters what we do with it because not raising it causes all sorts of problems. We should just get rid of it.
Not raising it causes only ONE problem that I see... we have to cut spending... that's a really BIG problem for Democrats, and sometimes, even Republicans. I vote we not raise it... I think we need it, I think it could be useful... you know, as a LIMIT on what we can spend... you know, like it was originally intended to be? We can get rid of YOU... that would be okay with me.
This country's economy is built solely on credit.Not raising the debt Ceiling will cause the economy to go into a downward spiral and crash. but why would rich republicans care? They already have their nest egg.
This country's economy is built solely on credit.Not raising the debt Ceiling will cause the economy to go into a downward spiral and crash. but why would rich republicans care? They already have their nest egg.
Can some pinhead answer me this... what purpose does the debt ceiling serve, if every time we reach it, we raise it? Do any of you have a rational explanation?
The same reason governments always say they can't afford to help the poor while they go about spending money on other things.
It was either Cheney or Rumsfeld who replied when questioned about the Iraq war, "It was an option we could afford."
The same excuse used to try and derail ObamaCare. "We can't afford it." There's never money to help the ill and the poor and the homeless but no problem financing a war or building roads and bridges and monuments and throwing parties.
It's just an excuse for the government to say, "We can't afford it", whatever "it" may be unless, of course, it's something like a war where the cost used to be kept separate.
It's like asking a friend if they want to go out to a club or go to an event that costs money and they reply, "I can't afford it" and a week later they spend $500 on sports equipment. It had nothing to do with "affording". They simply didn't want to spend money on going out.
The same principal applies to the debt ceiling. "We can't afford it" is just another way of saying, "We don't want to...."
Since you are giving partisan examples why don't the Democrats just eliminate it then so they can supposedly be free to spend all the money they want on what they deem worthy?
Since you are giving partisan examples why don't the Democrats just eliminate it then so they can supposedly be free to spend all the money they want on what they deem worthy?
I agree with Dixie, we should eliminate the debt ceiling.
I never said we should eliminate it. My question was, what is the purpose of having one, if every time we reach it, we raise it? I would think the purpose of a "ceiling" would be self-evident by the name. The current proposal is to raise it another $2 trillion, but at current spending levels, that only buys us another two years before we are faced with raising it again. And what do you suppose will be the solution in two years? Are we going to dramatically cut spending by then, or are we going to hear the same old crap about how we have to raise our debt ceiling again or bad shit will happen?
Can some pinhead answer me this... what purpose does the debt ceiling serve, if every time we reach it, we raise it? Do any of you have a rational explanation?
I cannot think of a single good reason why we have one.
It matters what we do with it because not raising it causes all sorts of problems. We should just get rid of it.
The Democrats can't just eliminate it. It exists by statute and would have to be eliminated by statute. The debt ceiling is fucking stupid because Congress has already authorized the spending. The debt ceiling concerns whether Congress will authorize payment for the spending that it has already authorized. There should be no debt ceiling and the Treasury ought to have authorization to incur debts as necessary to cover whatever spending Congress has authorized.
The purpose is to do exactly what is taking place right now. It forces them to either blindly raise it or to discuss the ramifications of an ever higher level of debt for the US. Essentially it is an accountability measure. Do they just keep increasing it like so many times in the past? Do they link it to future debt elimination? We the people must hold them accountable for their decision. If they raise it without any spending cuts for the future.... I would guess that anyone voting in favor of it is going to have a hard time being re-elected (with the exception of the specially built "safe seats" where one party dominates consistently)