How Big is the US Debt?

 


Economics professor Antony Davies illustrates the size the U.S. federal government's debt and unfunded obligations. He breaks down U.S. debt and obligations into constituent parts and compares them with the size of the GDP of countries around the world, showing the magnitude of America's fiscal situation.

 

Want to give that graph a closer look? Prof. Davies has made it available on his website here:
http://www.antolin-davies.com/conventionalwisdom/governmentdebt.pdf

Social Security vs. Private Retirement Accounts

Prof. Antony Davies analyzes Social Security in the United States through the lens of a typical 22 year old American. Assuming that Social Security is completely solvent, the expected return on investment (ROI) of Social Security is far lower than the expected ROI of a private account. Further, if an individual could hypothetically opt out of Social Security payments and invest the funds entirely in Treasury Bills, the Treasury bills would even yield a greater Return on Investment. No matter how you look at it Social Security is a bad deal for everyone. The system doesn't just need to be reformed, it needs to be scrapped.