There are some important differences between Japan and the US, though.
Vodalus Send a noteboard - 08/06/2010 02:56:56 PM
.....but it is important enough to repeat. Greece collapsed with a debt to GDP ratio of 113%. In less than 2 years, we will be over 100%.....and there is no one that can bail us out. Most folks don't understand the seriousness of what is going now.
Japan has carried around a 130% debt to GDP ratio for a good while now, and they're still among the richest countries on the planet. The US certainly is going to have a hard time getting its debt lower again, particularly considering how ridiculously fast it's climbing now, but the comparison to Greece is a bit silly.
See the link for a somewhat more serious comparison of various countries. I'm not entirely sure how the differences between the left and right column can be that big, but then I haven't studied the research in detail.
The first one is that Japan runs a large current account surplus, second only to China's. The other is that the average Japanese household has two-years worth of income squirreled in bank and postal savings accounts. Conversely, America's current account deficit is far and away the largest in the world. And I have my doubts about the average American household having even as much as a six-month supply of savings.
Of course, Japan has some demographic trends which will likely erase those positives.
南無阿弥陀仏!
US Debt to Overtake GDP in 2012 - 
- 08/06/2010 04:07:29 AM
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- 08/06/2010 04:07:29 AM
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Didn't we just talk about this?
- 08/06/2010 04:11:18 AM
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Not exactly.....
- 08/06/2010 04:18:51 AM
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It's hard to take seriously...
- 08/06/2010 05:13:48 AM
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So, in order to save money, we have to spend more money.....got it.
- 08/06/2010 05:21:59 AM
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You have heard of the concept of "investment" right?
- 08/06/2010 04:49:44 PM
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so you approve of war spending and tax cuts? *NM*
- 08/06/2010 05:24:56 PM
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I don't think I said that...
- 08/06/2010 07:04:18 PM
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why is it sunk cost? The money my son earned in Iraq he spent here in the US
- 08/06/2010 07:19:59 PM
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On the other hand...
- 08/06/2010 08:31:37 AM
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There are some important differences between Japan and the US, though.
- 08/06/2010 02:56:56 PM
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And it is those postal saving accounts that are screwing japan over
- 08/06/2010 05:00:41 PM
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My point was that Japan's public debt is offset somewhat by its high level of private savings.
- 08/06/2010 06:36:32 PM
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And here's a chart to put the numbers into a better historical perspective.
- 08/06/2010 04:49:42 AM
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Wow, the most debt since WWII, which isn't even a good comparison.....
- 08/06/2010 05:25:49 AM
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I have decided you know nothing about economics
- 09/06/2010 12:13:31 AM
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get trzaska some credit
- 09/06/2010 12:16:11 AM
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unsupported insults really are just so much noise *NM*
- 09/06/2010 05:01:05 AM
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Re: unsupported insults really are just so much noise
- 09/06/2010 07:56:48 AM
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so you were going to say something really smart but decided not to
- 09/06/2010 03:26:16 PM
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HA! HA! Summed up very nicely.....mick is just like Eric Cartman.
- 09/06/2010 03:34:56 PM
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