I put myself in the chair of the host and hearing someone ask me what they should do about their huge debt. I hope I would have the strength to hide my thankfulness of not being in their position, and instead look at their core condition. Debt is a fact of their existence. The worst advice is to say they need to get that debt to zero.
Within this alternative history and starting around 1960, I imagine a different progression of obligation growth in terms of number of programs, of more generous eligibility requirements, of more generous benefits, and of higher national debt. Although the constituency for this part of government are the primary beneficiaries of the obligations, there will be political differences based on different interests within this age group. The financial requirements for self-funding the government or begging for transfer from the operational government will heighten the political debate.
The fastest growing component of the federal budget and already a major fraction of the overall spending involve the health-care entitlements of medicare, medicaid, affordable care act, and others. These programs provide direct payment to delivery of health services to participants. Although separate programs with different mechanisms for revenue and cost controls, the overall…
Hypothesis Discovery 