Should we worry about the National Debt?

Well what do you think? Should we worry about the National Debt or should we ignore it? According to http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/, each citizen's share of this debt is $30,202.07 as of December 17th, 2007 at 7:06 PM.

Sound off below.

Sell your citizenship?

UGA Economist Dwight Lee has an idea that he claims would help the immigration controversy in the United States, and the homeless/panhandling problem: allow US citizens to sell their citizenship to non-Americans. The American selling their citizenship would have to leave the country, and the buyer would be a US citizen.

What do you think of this idea? Do you think it would work at its stated purpose (with restrictions on selling citizenship to terrorists, etc.)?

(Taken from Walker Economics Blog)

Is inflation always a bad thing?

What conclusions can you draw about who is helped and who is hurt by inflation?

Explain your answers below.

Hearing On Toys, Children's Products, And The Chinese Sweatshops

http://consumerist.com/consumer/news-from-the-swamp/liveblogging-the-senate-commerce-committee-hearing-on-toys-childrens-products-and-the-chinese-sweatshops-in-which-theyre-made-314833.php

The Senate Housing Committee will look at the lives of the young Chinese Workers who make the toys that we buy. They get to play with toys for a living so what is the big deal? Discuss.

College Costs Rising...

College Costs Rising at Double the Inflation Rate

Think you have saved up enough for college? Think again. With the price of college increasing at a faster rate than inflation, many are being forced to take out loans to pay for college. At what point is the opportunity cost of attending college too much?

"Tuition and other costs, not including room and board, rose to $6,185 at public four-year colleges this year, up 6.6 percent from last year, while tuition at private colleges hit $23,712, an increase of 6.3 percent. At public two-year institutions, average tuition and fees rose 4.2 percent to $2,361.
Last year, tuition and fees at public institution rose by 5.7 percent; at private ones, by 6.3 percent and at public two-year institutions, by 3.8 percent.
“The average price of college is continuing to rise more rapidly than the consumer price index, more rapidly than prices in the economy,” Sandy Baum, a co-author of the report who is a senior policy analyst for the College Board and a professor at Skidmore College, told reporters at a news conference this morning. She added that the prices “are probably higher than most of us want them to be.”"

Money Does Not Buy Happiness

http://www.newsweek.com/id/43884/output/print

While having millions of dollars may not ensure happiness, it does mean that you could have the sweetest surround sound system on earth. Economists and psychologists have learned that the money-happiness factor lies somewhere in the middle class. I would be willing to spend time in the upper class to test this theory.

Anybody think I will be less happy?

In the year 2000...

Predictions of the Year 2000

"The Ladies Home Journal from December 1900, which contained a fascinating article by John Elfreth Watkins, Jr. “What May Happen in the Next Hundred Years”. "

The predictions are over 100 years old and describe a future that has yet to occur. One of my favorites is Prediction #4. I especially love the last part.

Prediction #4: There Will Be No Street Cars in Our Large Cities. All hurry traffic will be below or high above ground when brought within city limits. In most cities it will be confined to broad subways or tunnels, well lighted and well ventilated, or to high trestles with “moving-sidewalk” stairways leading to the top. These underground or overhead streets will teem with capacious automobile passenger coaches and freight with cushioned wheels. Subways or trestles will be reserved for express trains. Cities, therefore, will be free from all noises.

Which predictions seem the most far-fetched to you? Which ones are possibly just around the corner?

Raise the minimum wage?

http://www.epinet.org/content.cfm/issueguides_minwage

Should the United States Government raise minimum wage to keep up with the rising cost of living? Who would be the winners and the losers in the long run? Use the above site to learn about the issues.

Fed Lowers Key Rate to 4.75 Percent

Do you think the Federal Reserve was correct in the decision to lower the Dicount Rate and the Federal Funds Rate? Does this move encourage people to continue buying beyond their means?