An Inconvenient Debt: I.O.U.S.A

Did you know:

* In November 2005 the national debt stood at $4.7 trillion. On August 31, 2007, the debt hit $8 trillion. As I.O.U.S.A. debuts in theatres this month, the debt will spiral over $9 trillion.
* By January of 2009, the U.S. federal debt will be over $10 trillion. The total federal fiscal hole will be around $56 trillion. And with each passing moment, your share, your children and grandchildren's share goes up. Whatever measuring stick you care to use, the long-term finances of the federal government and by extension, the national economy are dismal and getting worse at an alarming rate. To meet its current obligations, the United States government racks up another $1.46 million of debt every day.
* Every citizen already "owes" over $30,000. By 2010, that figure will be $38,000.
* In 2005 and 2006, American households spent more money than they took home. That's a negative savings rate. The last time the country had a negative savings rate was back in 1933 and 1934 - admittedly not good years for America or the world.
* In 2007, the total U.S. trade deficit was $738.6 billion, which is down 9% from 2006. Much of the decline could be attributed to a decline in the value of the U.S. Dollar.
* In less than ten years, China's ownership of U.S. securities has gone from around $50 billion to more than $500 billion.
* With our extremely low national savings rate, we have no choice but to turn to foreigners to finance our debt. U.S. debt held by foreigners totaled $2.5 trillion as of March of 2008, and we borrow $711 billion more from the rest of the world then we lend to it.


The book includes stories about the people involved in making decisions about the four major deficits in the country and complete transcripts of interviews conducted with Warren Buffet, Alan Greenspan, Paul Volcker, Robert Rubin, Alice Rivlin, Pete Peterson, David Walker, Paul O'Neill, James Areddy, Arthur Laffer, Steve Forbes, and Bill Bonner.