Interesting article. Check it out here: http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1870699,00.html?xid=feed-yahoo-biztechActually, the deficit is on track to hit $1.2 trillion this year, but what's $200 billion among friends?
Seriously, what is it? To the average person, a number that big probably doesn't mean much. At some point long before the hundred-billion-dollar mark, large numbers simply become figures on the page, well beyond human scale and intuitive understanding. And yet as discussion about the economy and the impressive numbers that come along with it continue to dominate the news, it may be more important than ever to try to understand. Is a $700 billion financial-industry bailout a lot? Is a $775 billion economic-stimulus package enough? (See the worst business deals of 2008.)
Unfortunately, our puny human brains aren't particularly up to the task. Go back thousands of years and think about the simpler times of human existence.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
How to Understand Trillion Dollar Debt
Labels:
deficit,
economy,
Glen Maganzini,
national news,
politics
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