The Gorilla Rises

OK, it's official. I'm worried about whether or not the Federal bilge pumps can bail out enough red ink to keep the economy afloat. Bear Stearns, Fannie, Freddie, Lehman, and now B of A buys Merrill? Iraq continues to be hugely expensive (and far from a "victory". Even Bush has stopped using the word "victory", settling for "success" as the goal).

BONUS: The Feds announce the Federal Budget deficit for the fiscal year just concluded was an eye popping $400 billion dollars.

400. Billion. With a B.

Just to give you an idea of how much a billion dollars is...if you stacked 1 billion dollars in crisp new 100 dollar bills...the stack would be 33 stories tall. We just overspent our annual allowance by 400 of those stacks.

I wouldn't be surprised if the economy is about to eclipse Iraq as the most significant issue in the presidential election. I reckon Obama thinks so...at least it seems that way by his new tactical emphasis. I'd expect more hammering on the gross financial mismanagement by Washington powers that be and renewed demands for change.

The U.S. Treasury Department has a fairly understandable FAQ page about our National Debt.

The Gross National Debt