For all that disagree with the Tea Party ... Why is this view of our budget wrong so much so to you that people who think this is a reasonable point of view are "crazy" to you and worthy of your scorn?

This spells it out in pretty clear view. I rarely talk politics (and have no political affiliation, but I like Ron Paul.) I do, however, enjoy discussing economics. The above image makes a valid and sad point; we are a nation squandering the wealth and goodwill accumulated from two centuries of honest hard labor.

US debt is not identical to credit card debt. A lot of US debt is owned by pension funds, Social Security, banks, state government, the US treasury, and a smattering spread across other sectors. Two thirds of US debt is domestic.

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You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows - Robert A. Zimmerman

That doesn't change the fact that a debt is that and nothing else, and certainly not an asset.

Two thirds of the debt is domestic and if you figure out how to get on the receiving end of it you've got it made.

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You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows - Robert A. Zimmerman

That's the point, it doesn't matter if the debt is foreign (bleeding wealth); or domestic. That domestic debt isn't creating new wealth or assets, it's a form of madly abused social aid. It doesn't matter if we're losing the money to the global economy, or subsidizing Joe Lazy Ass back home, it's money being wasted on a dead end. Instead perhaps the funding saved from slashing the absurd defense budget and abused redundant social aid / wealth redistribution programs could be applied toward modernizing the transportation infrastructure in the US. It would create jobs, and facilitate commerce paving the way for wealth building.
In order to compete in the global economy one needs to be able to do "it" faster, reliably, and better than everyone else all while keeping cost under control. Since the production of consumables and durable goods can be done anywhere there is a willing workforce it is hard for the United States to excel in this regard. To have viable factories or workplaces we need our transportation grid to be up to date. We will not be able to afford a modernized transportation system until our nation controls it's spending.

Where was the Tea Party 8 years ago whenBush was growing theg'ment and spending like a drunk sailor?
A black Democrat gains the White House and these bimbos jump out their butts.
That's my disagreement with them.

The reality is the tea Party folks are correct. Bottom line, the path we're on is unsustainable.

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I'm sick of .sig files

My problem with all politicians is that they lie like rugs. They're always trying to promise things they don't even have permission to do yet; and the take ample advantage of the gnat like lifespan of the American public when it comes time to deliver on those past promises. In today's age of Infinite Media Coverage where every second of everything that happens everywhere is recorded and then broadcast by an enormous number of sources; the Two Party system finds itsself consistently locked in a debate ad nauseum fueled by the limitless amounts of information being transmitted. The important issues are landlocked by the endless bull****.

Exactly why, as I said ina different topic, I'll never vote for a Republican or Democrat again as long as I live. There really is no difference between the two. All these life long politicians, they all went to the same schools, listened to the same lectures, spend their entire working lives shuffling between jobs in Academia, Wall Street and high level political appointments. These are the people who have been running this country for the last 50 or 60 years. Y'all happy with the results? Frankly we were better off when the country was run by farmers.

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I'm sick of .sig files

I guess you would have to go back to before Europeans got here to find that time.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

There was no USA before the Europeans got here.

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I'm sick of .sig files

Not really. It's only in the last half century that the US has really lost any trace of it's once proud aggricultural roots. There needs to be a crackdown on the mega farms of all sorts. You can have all the quality control inspections and standards to be met you like on this super farming, but when it gets too big you lose the soul associated with working the earth and natures creatures. Plants and animals are complex beings requiring vast amounts of attention for them to mature properly; not unlike human beings. When you scale everything up to poultry farms with millions of birds and billions of acres of corporate genetically modified produce things start take on a uniform shade of bland lifelessness.
Americans also need to lower their expectations. It is unreasonable for there to be hundreds of pounds of filet mingon available on demand at a variety of corporate grocery clones. The rare parts of the beef should just be priced accordingly. When man attempts to molest the ways of nature so that there are absurd amounts of fresh dairy products available on demand things are bound to go wrong.

I think Tom was referring to the various Indian tribes indigenous to North America as being the only "true" subsistence farmers who ever ran this landmass.

I disagree with the premise of your OP and with the premise of whoever put together the illustration in your OP.

I disagree with your premise because you seem to assume that "all that disagree with the Tea Party" believe that they are "crazy" and "worthy of [our] scorn." I disagree wholeheartedly with the Tea Party, but I don't think they are crazy (though at least a few surely are) nor do I scorn them.

I disagree with the premise of your illustration because it purports to make the question simple. Removing all the inconvenient variables from an analysis does not transform a complicated question into a simple one. I don't think your question is remotely simple.

Having said all that, my simplistic analysis is that there are two problems with the illustration. For one, where is the hypothetical family's mortgage balance? Did they pay cash for their home? Families and businesses incur debts way beyond their current income all the time, and thank God for that. Second, government debt can have beneficial stimulative and other effects. The same can't be said of household debt.

I'm sure an argument can be made that, even granting those points, the government debt is just too darn big. I have two thoughts about that. First, let's see the proof that it is too darn big. Second, what has the Tea Party proposed that will lessen the debt? I am unclear on that.