- Introduction
Learn- Try It
- Task
Learn
|
Before we start the lesson, read the definitions of vocabulary that will be introduced in the lesson.
Each year the government operates on a federal budget. Everything the government spends money on from brooms to aircraft carriers is accounted for in spending. Not only does the budget include expenditures, but also expected revenues. Read Federal Spending: Where Does the Money Go to get an idea of the federal government's budget, where the government spends money and the amount of money involved. The key to the budget is understanding the difference between mandatory and discretionary spending. There are things the government chooses to spend its money on and some things, according to the law, it has to spend its money. To get visual of how much money the government is dealing with, check out US Federal Budget Visualized - Your Tax Dollars at Work. Now that you have an awareness of the size and purpose of the budget, it is important to learn about budget deficits and the national debt. Watch How Budget Deficits Work to learn about budget deficits, budget surpluses and the basics of debt. Read US National Debt and Deficit History to see a history of U.S. debt and look for a couple of specifics. First of all notice the periods of high debt during times of war. Next, look at the growth of the debt since about the 1960s with the introduction of the Great Society programs of the 1960s and the build of the U.S. military during the 1980s. Read What is the Deficit? to see the deficits of the last decade and how much has been added to the national debt. Look at the US Debt Clock to see information on the debt, deficit, budget, GDP, the labor force, the money supply and student loan debt. You can click on the State Debt tab to look at Alabama's clock and the World Debt tab to see the worldwide debt situation. To totally understand the debt and deficit it is necessary to learn two more topics. How is it that the government can keep borrowing money? Watch Understanding The Debt Ceiling to learn about the debt ceiling and see how the government basically issues itself its own credit. Next, read Who Owns the United States National Debt? to see who buys government securities to fund the government at its current consumption levels. Now that you have a working knowledge of the debt and deficit you are going watch a series of videos by Learn Liberty. People have different attitudes about the debt and deficit. Some feel the debt is necessary to help those who are handicapped, unemployed, in need of assistance or just feel very strongly about any of the myriad of government programs. It seems that most politicians recognize the problem with the current deficits and debts, but very few have the will power or authority to do much to limit the debt and deficit. Use the resources below to learn more about the problem of a large debt and possible solutions. How Should Governments Deal With Debt? What If the National Debt Were Your Debt? How Government Crowds out Private Investment How Raising Taxes Will Not Balance the Budget: More Evidence |
 |
 |