Making the Debt More Understandable

Ivo Welch, a professor of economics and finance at UCLA, wrote an op-ed for the LA Times that appeared in the Pioneer Press today, giving a good way to understand what a trillion dollars means to normal people, in the context of the deficit Republicans plan run up further in their Big Murder Bill:

• The current debt equals $240,000 on average per taxpayer. That equals six years of median income. As he says, "For most people, learning that you owe $240,000 is a lot more concerning than hearing that the national debt is $37 trillion."
• Every year (now — before the Murder Bill), U.S. spending is adding another $10,000 per taxpayer to that amount because expenses exceed income. That's $10,000 every year.
• And the interest rate paid on the debt is about to go up, from 2.3% to about 4%, which will increase the per-taxpayer amount by another $4,000 per year.
• Then there's the Republicans' Murder Bill. That will add another $18,000 per taxpayer.

As I've probably said before, to me the debt is imaginary compared to the physical reality of the climate crisis, yet Republicans don't care about climate and are now actively working to undermine the climate action recently undertaken.

But I still appreciate Welch's ability to make the debt more tangible, and those interest payments are real in the sense that they are paid out currently to the debt-holders.