Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

U.S. government budget ends fiscal year with a more than $3T deficit

cnbc.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–20 of 37 posts

Re: U.S. government budget ends fiscal year with a more than $3T deficit

#11

Post by LatteLazy »

legerdemain wrote: post #7
LatteLazy wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The issue with the US system is that 99% of local actions are unsustainable. Everything is federal or nothing, even at the state level you end up socialising losses and privatising gains. .

So is it worth having any of these things at all, or are they inevitably a net negative in the long run anyway?

Why not just change the system. The US is about the only place on earth with this weird system forcing every town and county and city and state to compete. It doesn't seem to work. No one seems to have designed it, it just turned out like this.

Re: U.S. government budget ends fiscal year with a more than $3T deficit

#12

Post by [deleted] »

AnimalMuppet wrote: post #2

The proposed new Covid relief doesn't hold out much hope for next year, either. I mean, look, if people can't work temporarily, you can't let that destroy the economy. You have to get them through, and you have to have an economy for them to come back to. But you can also cause problems by building up too much government debt. (I don't know what the right answer is, but I see lots of problems...)

[deleted]

Re: U.S. government budget ends fiscal year with a more than $3T deficit

#13

Post by legerdemain »

socalnate1 wrote: post #8
legerdemain wrote: post #3

We waste so much money on initiatives and social programs that can be administered much more sensibly and cheaply by local communities. Community leaders can custom-tailor their approach to what their community needs, instead of a blanket, one-size-fits-all nationwide programs that waste money. Many of them could be run as community charities or even profitable businesses, if national government would just get out of…

Holy cow, this is the worst list I've ever seen. These are (almost) all things I treasure and I would hate to see abandoned to the wolves. Are you seriously suggesting libraries as wasteful programs and that Pharma companies run drug rehab programs! I can't tell if this is a troll comment or not. In case it is not just trolling, I suggest you read about the tragedy of the commons: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traged…

What led you to believe that I haven't heard of the tragedy of the commons? It's an inescapable little parable that's in the foreword of every intro textbook on economics.

In case you haven't read the wiki page you linked yourself, privatization is exactly the solution to the tragedy of the commons, and illustrating the benefits of private enterprise is exactly why the tragedy of the commons is ever brought up.

Re: U.S. government budget ends fiscal year with a more than $3T deficit

#14

Post by socalnate1 »

legerdemain wrote: post #13
socalnate1 wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Holy cow, this is the worst list I've ever seen. These are (almost) all things I treasure and I would hate to see abandoned to the wolves. Are you seriously suggesting libraries as wasteful programs and that Pharma companies run drug rehab programs! I can't tell if this is a troll comment or not. In case it is not just trolling, I suggest you read about the tragedy of the commons: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traged…

What led you to believe that I haven't heard of the tragedy of the commons? It's an inescapable little parable that's in the foreword of every intro textbook on economics. In case you haven't read the wiki page you linked yourself, privatization is exactly the solution to the tragedy of the commons, and illustrating the benefits of private enterprise is exactly why the tragedy of the commons is ever brought up.

Ok, you've convinced me that this isn't a troll account like it originally appeared. Can you elaborate on your proposal to have pharma companies run drug rehab programs and "partner with publishers" rather than have libraries run as they do?

Re: U.S. government budget ends fiscal year with a more than $3T deficit

#15

Post by tibbydudeza »

socalnate1 wrote: post #8
legerdemain wrote: post #3

We waste so much money on initiatives and social programs that can be administered much more sensibly and cheaply by local communities. Community leaders can custom-tailor their approach to what their community needs, instead of a blanket, one-size-fits-all nationwide programs that waste money. Many of them could be run as community charities or even profitable businesses, if national government would just get out of…

Holy cow, this is the worst list I've ever seen. These are (almost) all things I treasure and I would hate to see abandoned to the wolves. Are you seriously suggesting libraries as wasteful programs and that Pharma companies run drug rehab programs! I can't tell if this is a troll comment or not. In case it is not just trolling, I suggest you read about the tragedy of the commons: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traged…

Yep it makes perfect rational sense to have Purdue Pharma run the Oxycontin addiction treatment program.

Re: U.S. government budget ends fiscal year with a more than $3T deficit

#16

Post by legerdemain »

socalnate1 wrote: post #14
legerdemain wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What led you to believe that I haven't heard of the tragedy of the commons? It's an inescapable little parable that's in the foreword of every intro textbook on economics. In case you haven't read the wiki page you linked yourself, privatization is exactly the solution to the tragedy of the commons, and illustrating the benefits of private enterprise is exactly why the tragedy of the commons is ever brought up.

Ok, you've convinced me that this isn't a troll account like it originally appeared. Can you elaborate on your proposal to have pharma companies run drug rehab programs and "partner with publishers" rather than have libraries run as they do?

Given your initial comment, it is hard for me to see you as a good-faith conversationalist. I decline the opportunity.

Re: U.S. government budget ends fiscal year with a more than $3T deficit

#17

Post by Threeve303 »

tibbydudeza wrote: post #15
socalnate1 wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Holy cow, this is the worst list I've ever seen. These are (almost) all things I treasure and I would hate to see abandoned to the wolves. Are you seriously suggesting libraries as wasteful programs and that Pharma companies run drug rehab programs! I can't tell if this is a troll comment or not. In case it is not just trolling, I suggest you read about the tragedy of the commons: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traged…

Yep it makes perfect rational sense to have Purdue Pharma run the Oxycontin addiction treatment program.

The walled garden for addiction

Re: U.S. government budget ends fiscal year with a more than $3T deficit

#18

Post by jfengel »

socalnate1 wrote: post #8
legerdemain wrote: post #3

We waste so much money on initiatives and social programs that can be administered much more sensibly and cheaply by local communities. Community leaders can custom-tailor their approach to what their community needs, instead of a blanket, one-size-fits-all nationwide programs that waste money. Many of them could be run as community charities or even profitable businesses, if national government would just get out of…

Holy cow, this is the worst list I've ever seen. These are (almost) all things I treasure and I would hate to see abandoned to the wolves. Are you seriously suggesting libraries as wasteful programs and that Pharma companies run drug rehab programs! I can't tell if this is a troll comment or not. In case it is not just trolling, I suggest you read about the tragedy of the commons: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traged…

It's really tempting to apply Poe's Law when they propose to let the market decide which national parks are "worth it".

It reads an awful lot like a list of "things that other people need but I don't". It's also a weird mishmash of things that aren't federal and things whose total expenditure is such a tiny percentage of tax dollars that you could zero them out while making a rounding error in your paycheck. Things that actually have large budgets -- the military, social security, roads, primary education, police and fire departments -- are also things that they benefit from.

Re: U.S. government budget ends fiscal year with a more than $3T deficit

#19

Post by UhDev »

legerdemain wrote: post #16
socalnate1 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ok, you've convinced me that this isn't a troll account like it originally appeared. Can you elaborate on your proposal to have pharma companies run drug rehab programs and "partner with publishers" rather than have libraries run as they do?

Given your initial comment, it is hard for me to see you as a good-faith conversationalist. I decline the opportunity.

lol!!!

Re: U.S. government budget ends fiscal year with a more than $3T deficit

#20

Post by Shivetya »

Well we never will be able to tax our way out of it, there isn't enough wealth and you could confiscate all the wealth of every billionaire and fall ridiculously short.

the only out is to restrict spending. We don't actually have to cut anything even though we should. Hope budget increases below inflation as much as possible. Other countries have done it, why can't we? This means that programs that automatic increases built in don't get them if it pushes the budge past the limit.

This is not austerity, this is returning to proper budgeting where we don't use baseline budgeting which is how Congress lies to the American people with claims a program has been reduced.

Post reply on HN