Is the deficit getting worse or better? Or does it matter it anymore

Quote: Evenbob

They talk about the USD and the debt
and lots of reasons things won't collapse.

And half the reasons boil down to "we are the United States of America!" The USD has been remonetized three times since 1913, but you hardly noticed. And the USD has lost 99% of its value over that time.

Quote: AZDuffman

The USD has been remonetized three times since 1913, but you hardly noticed.

That's an interesting claim. Let me make a guess-

Jan 1934: gold standard changed from $20.87 to $35 per ounce (to encourage citizens to turn in their gold)
Jul 1944: Bretton woods agreement
Aug 1971: US unilaterally drops convertibility to gold

Quote: Pacomartin

That's an interesting claim. Let me make a guess-

Jan 1934: gold standard changed from $20.87 to $35 per ounce (to encourage citizens to turn in their gold)
Jul 1944: Bretton woods agreement
Aug 1971: US unilaterally drops convertibility to gold

Right track.



1913--Federal Reserve created
1964--silver removed from coinage
1971--gold window closed

Quote: Pacomartin

That's an interesting claim. Let me make a guess-

Jan 1934: gold standard changed from $20.87 to $35 per ounce (to encourage citizens to turn in their gold)

FDR did just the opposite, he devalued the dollar by 59% by executive order. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Executive_Order_6102

"The price of gold from the Treasury for international transactions was then raised by the Gold Reserve Act to $35 an ounce (equivalent to $677 in 2018)[4]. The resulting profit that the government realized funded the Exchange Stabilization Fund established by the Gold Reserve Act in 1934." my bold

Quote: Pacomartin

So we should just assume that no Republican or Democrat is capable of eliminating deficit spending.

Bill Clinton did it for a time. He had a strong economy to back him up.

Trump had the opportunity, and even made the promise, but didn't even try.

Quote: Pacomartin

So we should just assume that no Republican or Democrat is capable of eliminating deficit spending.

The promises were sincere, it's
just that when they get in there
they find it's totally out of their
control. To cut the deficit you'd
to halve the military, do away
with most gov't welfare programs,
stop spending on infrastructure,
eliminate foreign aid, etc. Make
the US a non world power.

Clinton 'balanced the budget'
but it was just a smoke and
mirrors paper trick. For it to
work everything had to go
exactly as written, which is
impossible.

I did not realize that the Federal Reserve Act (1913) required 40% gold backing of Federal Reserve Notes issued. Without the extra gold and the devalued dollar they would have busted through that limit in less than two decades.

Quote: petroglyph

FDR did just the opposite, he devalued the dollar by 59% by executive order. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Executive_Order_6102

My mistake. FDR changed the price of gold after he collected all the private gold.

Only 6 million troy ounces (178 metric tons) was from gold acquired in January 1934 under the gold buying program of Executive Order 6102 (which required individuals and institutions deliver to the government all but a small amount of their gold coin and bullion), and 26 million troy ounces (800 metric tons) from domestic production and return of scrap gold and coin after January.

But the bullion reserves were 194 million troy ounces at the end of 1933 jumped to 503 million troy ounces by the end of 1939.

Factors driving this growth were the gold price revaluation (dollar devaluation) in 1934 spurring an increase in global gold production, political uncertainties and rearmament programs in Europe, and general business developments. The vast majority of the increase, 277 million troy ounces , were the result of imports from abroad. This consisted of 174 million troy ounces out of foreign mines (largely from South Africa), 89 million troy ounces out of foreign central bank reserves (mostly France and the United Kingdom), with the balance from other sources (principally private holdings in India).

I've been trying to watch the Kaiser Report with Max Kaiser and Stacy Hubert, sponsored by Russia Today . The show is basically economic comedy, but very informative. The ECB has 13 trillion dollars of negative yielding bonds.

Lately he has been praising Bitcoin and uses analogy's which help understand economic topics with humor.

Quote: Dalex64

Bill Clinton did it for a time. He had a strong economy to back him up.

Trump had the opportunity, and even made the promise, but didn't even try.

What you mean is Clinton had the Gingrich congress forcing him to do it. He was dragged kicking and screaming. Remember when he shut the government down to keep from cutting planned spending?

Then he wanted the government to keep all that extra money!

Quote: Dalex64

Trump had the opportunity, and even made the promise, but didn't even try.

LOL!!!!! Didn't try???? Were you hiding under a rock when he tried to eliminate Obamacare?????????
What is that, 600 billion federal dollars?

He failed, but to say he didn't try is just another outright lie you perpetuate about the President.....
I'll let Tanko or Sancho list a bunch of other programs he wanted cut or eliminated as well.....