Defaulting on the National Debt

President-elect Obama apparently believes that the crisis brought on by the collapse of the housing bubble will require defaulting on the national debt. The New York Times reported today that Obama believes that “changes in Social Security and Medicare will be central to efforts to bring federal spending in line.”

While Medicare is projected to face shortfalls because of the incredible inefficiency of the U.S. health care system, the Congressional Budget Office projects that Social Security will be fully funded until 2049 from its own stream of tax revenues and the U.S. bonds it holds.

If Mr. Obama plans to cut Social Security in the near future, then this effectively amounts to a default on the bonds held by the trust fund which were purchased with workers’ Social Security taxes. If the budget situation is so dire that it is necessary to default on the government debt, then surely we should be considering defaulting on the bonds held by Robert Rubin, Peter Peterson, and other wealthy bankers, not just the bonds that were bought to pay Social Security benefits for the country’s workers.

Dean Baker

This isn’t a national championship—it’s a big-money waltz

Bill James urges his colleagues to boycott the BCS. An excerpt from a piece that really requires you to read it all:

It is inherent in the nature of sports to seek a clear resolution of the competition. You have two football conferences, two basketball conferences, two baseball leagues—you want to know who the best team really is. That doesn’t come from anywhere; it’s integral to the sport. It’s like a movie; either the boy gets the girl, or he doesn’t. Either the cop catches the killer, or he doesn’t. Either the hero wins the battle, or he dies on the battlefield. That’s just the way it is, whether it’s Shakespeare or schlock. Leaving the situation unresolved is unpopular because it’s unnatural.

Another Story with an Unhappy Ending (At Least This Chapter)

4th Time’s A Charm….right?

Janaury 7th

Today is the birthday

… of William Peter Blatty, author of The Exorcist. He’s 81.

… of Paul Revere Dick, 71. He and Mark Lindsay formed Paul Revere & The Raiders in 1960. They recorded “Louie Louie” in the same studio as The Kingsmen in Portland, Oregon in 1963. (The song was written in 1955.) The Kingsmen won that battle, but The Raiders went on to record five top 10 hits, including the number one, “Indian Reservation,” which sold six million copies.

… of Kenneth Clark Loggins. He’s 61.

… of David Stephen Caruso, 53.

… of Katherine Anne Couric. University of Virigina grad Katie Couric is 52.

… of Nicholas Kim Coppola. The Oscar-winner, known better as Nicolas Cage, is 45.

Best line of the week, so far

“BCS commissioners propose two-team playoff.”

Sportspickle.com via Sideline Chatter

You hear voices in the night and its Joe Buck and Troy Aikman

Among the top-10 signs you’re watching too much football, from CBS’s David Letterman:

• “Only fresh air you’ve had this month is opening door for pizza guy.

• “You refer to orange juice as ‘FedEx orange juice.’

• “You schedule an appointment to talk to your doctor about Andy Reid’s cholesterol.

• “Three words: Norv Turner tattoo.”

Sideline Chatter | Seattle Times Newspaper

As Title Game Approaches, What About Utah?

But in an open letter to the 72 members of the media who choose the Associated Press No. 1, the Washington Post’s John Feinstein makes a strong case for them to place undefeated Utah at the top of their ballot.

“The reason to vote for Utah is simple: This is the one and only way you can stand up to the BCS bullies — the university presidents, commissioners, athletic directors and the TV networks who enable them — and, to renew a catch phrase, just say no,” Feinstein argues. “Say no to this horrible, hypocritical, feed-the-big-boys system. Say no to the idea that fair competition doesn’t matter. Say no to all the hype surrounding the power conferences and power teams. To co-opt yet another catch phrase, say yes to change.”

The Daily Fix