• Our federal government has grown its spending dramatically over the last several years. Check out this summary of spending from the Wikipedia web resource. In addition, the Office of Management and Budgets also provides historical tables of receipts and outlays.
  
  

As the overspending now amounts to trillions of dollars a year, clearly the deficit problem is not related to lack of revenue. If tax revenue somehow governed spending, then we would not plan to overspend by trillions of dollars annually. That's millions of millions. Nearly unimaginable for most folk, even scientists and math geeks. Check out this illustration of what trillions actually represents.

A trillion dollar overspend is the result of politicians no longer being governed by any sense of fiscal propriety, and just ... spending whatever they feel they wish to.

• Consider this example - lets say you have a monthly take home pay of 1,000 (use any number you wish to, I'm using 1,000 for ease.) Now, let's say that you have friends that will lend you money that must be paid back (because if you do not, your friends will lose their wealth - they will be financially hurt, because they trusted you.) And, they will keep lending you money as often as you come back to them. But, they do want to be paid back. Now, let's say that given all this good fortune and trust, you decide to spend 1,760 a month, every month, and it is no problem because your friends keep lending you money. The things you spend the 1,760 on are things you are certain you need. And, you are used to it. Soon, the fact that you take home 1,000 a month is now irrelevant to you. You don't care because you think your friends will keep lending you money. You do this until you now owe your friends 78,900 dollars. The comparative calculations are in the table below:
  
  

  Federal (trillions) is like a Personal If revenue of 2.2 is like a 1,000 monthly salary then spending of 3.8 is like a 1,760 monthly budget and debt of 14.3 is like a 78,900 personal debt Unfunded liabilities of 75.0 are like a 414,000 secondary debt for total gov liability of 89.3 or like a 493,000 total obligation

  As of this update, this IS the situation our federal government is in right now. Actually, it's worse. Because our government has also been making huge unfunded promises (liabilities.) "Unfunded" means that it has not identified additional income with which it can deliver on these promises. Add these unfunded liabilities to our example, and you owe your friends 493,000. On a 1,000 per month salary. And, actually, your friends need to get paid back.

  
  In this situation, have you been a good friend? Can you be considered honorable?