Umm, I think you missed the point of that comment.
Deficits are well understood at this point because the economic implications of them have been worked out in modelling over the last 45 years. Longer, if you take the General Theory into account.
Still, deficit budgeting is an art that has pretty much been perfected and is well accounted for.
When was the last time the US has had consistent surplusses such as these, and how much work has gone into dealing with them? Virtually none.
This comment wasn't one to spread fear or spark uncertainty. It was meant to point out that the WORST thing that can be done is to do nothing (which is the current state of affairs). In other words...pay down debt or give back tax cuts. In all likelihood, some mix of the two (though, technically, a balanced budget pays down debt by its very nature and who wants to buy back debt at inflated prices? Something Al pointed out).
This is no empty gesture. This is reality. The fact that these surplusses have been piling up is an embarassment of monumental proportions. Al has commented on this several times, BTW. Thing is, Larry Summers isn't the brightest bulb on the face of the earth...he's the guy who wrote a tract on shipping all our waste to 3rd world countries and paying them to take it. |
