Shown below are recent increases to the US Treasury’s Debt Ceiling:
|
Date |
Increase (Billions) |
Source |
Debt Limit (Trillions) |
| October 3, 2008 | $700 | CNN (initial attempt was blocked by Congress on September 29) |
$11.315 |
| July 30, 2008 | $800 | Reuters |
$10.615 |
| September 29, 2007 | $850 | Reuters |
$9.815 |
| March 20, 2006 | $781 | Reuters |
$8.965 |
Useful Resource: The Debt Limit: History and Recent Increases – April 29, 2008
US National Debt
Currently stands at: 
The National Debt has continued to increase an average of $2.42 billion per day since September 28, 2007. Source: brillig.com
Shown graphically:
Source: Mark TAW
Why Bother?
The current global economic system is based on a Ponzi Scheme – it relies on continual growth to maintain itself. In time it will reach a point where it can no longer sustain the required growth. As with all Ponzi Schemes, it has to collapse. While it cannot be predicted at what value the system will collapse, tracking this important metric provides an indication of the trend.
Indirectly, the debt figure is an indication of how much of a consumer society the West has become. In the East, where there is little concept of ‘property ownership’, it would be inconceivable to treat a home like an ATM.
