Why Don't Americans Ever Ask The Right Questions?
Posted 9/30/2008 8:54 PM EDT on democratandchronicle.com

I was reading an article in the USA Today called "A Chance to improve the bailout", written by Joseph E. Stiglitz who is a professor at Columbia University. Mr. Stiglitz was awarded the Nobel prize in economics in 2001 and served as chairman of President Clinton's Council of Economic Advisers, so I am assuming his facts are correct.

Before giving his opinion on the bailout, Mr. Stiglitz states, "Meanwhile, our national debt, which has increased from $5.7 trillion to more than $9 trillion in the last seven years, and was set to increase by almost $1 trillion more in the next couple of years without the bailout, will go up even more." He also said, "When interest rates return to more normal levels, of say 5%, this means we'll be paying as interest on our national debt more than half a trillion dollars a year....much of this money is borrowed abroad, especially from China." "There are no two ways about it: Our living standards in the future will be lower than otherwise would have been."

Doesn't this alarm anyone besides myself? That is almost the entire cost of the bailout each and every year! Why don't Americans ever ask the right questions? Who are these people that we are paying half a trillion dollars a year to? How much have we paid them already? What other countries are forced to pay large amounts of interest due to similar circumstances? How much money do these people have and What do they plan to do with it?

The amount of money spent paying the interest on the national debt, makes the bailout problem seem miniscule in comparison. WHY DOESN'T ANYONE TALK ABOUT THAT?