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Comment by dataflow | Hacker News Reader

I've seen extremely smart/well-educated people (not in politics or any skin in the game) argue the debt isn't really a problem. "It's not like your household debt" and all. This one probably isn't just about education.

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That is the Fed educated position. The Keynsian view of economics sees the good economic times as normal and bad economic times as the aberration. Thus, from that view you go into debt to hold the economy over until the good times return.

I've always seen that as an excuse to spend more that you have. Its a trap that is difficult to get out. It is the same as taking more personal debt that you can service. But in the case of the government the bank never says no.

In small amounts, say <3 trillion dollars, the smart people are right. If the government needs to run a deficit to fight a war, or get the population through a pandemic, it is not a problem.

The problem is it is forever, and it is growing.

Fantasy that you can do this for 50 years.

To be clear, these folks very specifically refer to the giant amounts, not merely the small ones.

That's because the US national debt is indeed not like household debt. As a household, I can't choose to print more GlibMonkeyDeathBucks and hand them out to service my debts. I also don't have my own standing army to defend from creditors who might try to seize my hard assets.

Yes, printing money is inflationary.

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