Filed your taxes?

[Uptown]

I will be giving my S.S. check to charity or Las Vegas depending on my mood at the time because I will not be depending my retirement on any government handout. Consider facts regarding the deficit.

That's beside the point. The point is that you paid in your money, and the government is using YOUR money for its own expenses. In my opinion, that's stealing from the American public.

The trade deficit is not the cause of bad things, but the result of good things in our economy. It reflects an economy ripe with investment opportunities and flush with consumer confidence. America's economy has performed better in years in which the trade deficit rose compared to years in which it shrank. During years of rising deficits, the growth of real gross domestic product averaged 3.2 percent per year, compared to 2.3 percent during years of shrinking deficits. If trade deficits really are a drag on growth, why does the economy grow so much faster when the trade deficit is getting bigger?

The American economy and the trade deficit are really separate issues. The American economy runs at the will of corporate America, and really has nothing to do with trade deficits and the like. In my opinion, the government itself has little influence over the American economy.

On the other hand, the government's sign of fiscal irresponsibility will affect American's pocket books in years to come. It will indeed be the American taxpayer that will have to foot the bill for the existing deficit we have now. It will be your children (if you have any) that will be slaving and paying for the expenses of today. Do you think living on credit is wise? I don't think so.

By the way, I never said trade deficits were a drag on growth.