That Depends on What Your Definition of "Broke" Is

There's a new Leftist narrative starting to make its way into the public consciousness. It seems the Left doesn't believe we're running out of money, but rather that the money isn't getting spent on the right things. Van Jones has said it. Michael Moore has said it. And now New York Times columnist Paul Krugman has said it.

The problem is we actually are broke as a country. Just because companies make profits, people are rich, and we can still borrow money, it doesn't mean the economy is rosy. If anything, those situations and the simplistic notions Leftists draw from them mask the real problem. We are still spending more than we take in and hoping we can shift money around so we can cover all the bills in the short term, just like some people do today. It may keep the creditors off our backs for a little while, but eventually something happens that causes the house of cards to fall in on itself.

Right now, there are a lot of things that could cause our national economy to fall apart. Unrest in the Middle East, oil and gas prices on the rise, the number of people on the public dole, unemployment, unnecessary federal spending, all of these and other factors stack up to a monumental fiscal mess.

And what does Krugman suggest? Spend more now that will equate to savings later.

Yeah, that might work, provided we ever get to later. Right now, I'm not sure we can safely make that assumption because we're not willing to make the tough choices now that will shore up the economy down the road. Oh, we agree to it in theory, but in practice...not so much. Just look at the attempts to shave billions off the federal budget proposed by Democrats and Republicans. Both proposals are half-hearted and seek to save sacred cows for their side. Now isn't the time to ignore waste because we like the outcome. If we're going to get serious about having an economic future, we need to turn sacred cows into holy hamburger.

Including the sacred cows of Leftists like Jones, Moore, and Krugman.