A vision of 2016

In 4 years, 322 days I'm going to retire at age 66 (if I can keep working before the next bottom falls out of the US economy). Assuming Zero gets re-elected in 2012 the US government will be $24T in debt by February 2016. Social Security and Medicare will be the single largest budget item at $1.7T per year, dwarfing defense spending at a mere $621B. More than 75 million retirees or 23% of the US population will be retired the year before I take the plunge.

Official unemployment will be 4.7% while actual unemployment will be 11.1%. Less than half of the 325 million US population will be working my last year of work! Specifically, 43% of the US population will be employed! Probably even less as BLS continues to cook the books.

Total US assets will be $59T with total unfunded liabilities of $144T. Americans will owe 2.44 times our total assets AND 8.5 times our national GDP. Expressed on an annual basis, government debt will be 138% of GDP in 2016.

Is there any chance this madness can go on? Who would or even could loan money to this utterly bankrupt empire? Chinese, Indians, South Americans, Africans, Russians and all the rest will ask why are 325 million americans, or 4.4% of the global population worth the costs.

There will be a great leveling over the next four years.