whidbey

More on 'Buffett Pie' and Paying For Tax Cuts

You are virtually alone in your concerns as far as I can tell. This is the problem, not the scenarios of the CBO. The "everything now is not enough" generations are here to stay simply because it is costing none of the debtor generations anything (except a little inflation) to over consume. The tax cuts of Bush are the least of the problem, it starts with a Congress which is for sale via the simple mechanism of bribing the electorate.

You know, several philosophers starting with the Greeks pointed out that democracies would predictably always fail when the majority found out they could grant themselves things by taking from the minority of the polity. These would be majorities based on income levels, lower than average income earners can easily vote themselves the assets of the minority. If Pareto's 80/20 wealth distribution hypothesis holds 80% of the population will be interested in redistribution of wealth ( and income) and what is more, they will be able to effect the desired results. In short, all democracies are doomed from the very start and it is only a short time until they all fail. You have noticed something that is unpleasant to contemplate, but it is destiny.