a view from the edge

The $23 trillion national debt explained (sort of)

The past 18 months have seen the economy take a hiatus across many industries. Less commerce, less tax revenue, more government spending needed to keep the population going, means more borrowing. But let’s put some of this into context, historical context. It is not, thankfully, as bad as you may think.

Our national government debt is, currently, $23,000,000,000,000 (that’s $23 trillion). And that’s roughly 129% of our total national output called Gross National Product (GDP), for one year. Now, it is worth remembering that 18 months ago our ratio of debt to GDP was about 100%. So, it has increased 29%. But if you think about the Bush financial crisis of 2007-08 that Obama inherited, the debt ratio to GDP was about 62% before the crash. And then it rose to 105% in just 12 years — 15% of that after 2016. 

The 2007-08 financial crisis was, in fact, bigger than the crisis over COVID. Why? Because the financial crisis was harder to deal with since every bank and all property was affected. Now as COVID wanes, the economy is quickly roaring back, and it won’t take years to get back to an even keel.

But there’s some historical context: Compare government debt ratio today to the ratio against GDP at the end of WWII when it was way over 118%… we came back from that calamity, but that took 10 years. We can do it again and again, but this time much faster.

And here’s another piece of good news (so far): A fair amount of the national debt is the Treasury borrowing money from itself. Yes, you read that right, the U.S. government borrows from itself. And they do that to stabilize the value of treasury notes and bonds (this keeps investors confident) and, when they pay it back or defease those bonds they do that slowly and usually just before issuing more expensive bond and treasury notes to people outside of the U.S.

To sum up: The government is borrowing money but the outlook of the ratio to GDP is nowhere near as bad, for quick recovery, as events in the past 80 years. As America gets back to work, it’ll all work out, especially when inflation makes a comeback (what, you thought banks and investors don’t want more profit?).

 

Writer Peter Riva, a former resident of Amenia Union, now resides in New Mexico.

a view from the edge
The views expressed here are not necessarily those of The Millerton News and The News does not support or oppose candidates for public office.

Latest News

In remembrance: Tim Prentice and the art of making the wind visible

In remembrance: Tim Prentice and the art of making the wind visible
In remembrance: Tim Prentice and the art of making the wind visible
In remembrance: Tim Prentice and the art of making the wind visible

There are artists who make objects, and then there are artists who alter the way we move through the world. Tim Prentice belonged to the latter. The kinetic sculptor, architect and longtime Cornwall resident died in November 2025 at age 95, leaving a legacy of what he called “toys for the wind,” work that did not simply occupy space but activated it, inviting viewers to slow down, look longer and feel more deeply the invisible forces that shape daily life.

Prentice received a master’s degree from the Yale School of Art and Architecture in 1960, where he studied with German-born American artist and educator Josef Albers, taking his course once as an undergraduate and again in graduate school.In “The Air Made Visible,” a 2024 short film by the Vision & Art Project produced by the American Macular Degeneration Fund, a nonprofit organization that documents artists working with vision loss, Prentice spoke of his admiration for Albers’ discipline and his ability to strip away everything but color. He recalled thinking, “If I could do that same thing with motion, I’d have a chance of finding a new form.”

Keep ReadingShow less
people

Strategic partnership unites design, architecture and construction

Strategic partnership unites design, architecture and construction

Hyalite Builders is leading the structural rehabilitation of The Stissing Center in Pine Plains.

Provided

For homeowners overwhelmed by juggling designers, architects and contractors, a new Salisbury-based collaboration is offering a one-team approach from concept to construction. Casa Marcelo Interior Design Studio, based in Salisbury, has joined forces with Charles Matz Architect, led by Charles Matz, AIA RIBA, and Hyalite Builders, led by Matt Soleau. The alliance introduces an integrated design-build model that aims to streamline the sometimes-fragmented process of home renovation and new construction.

“The whole thing is based on integrated services,” said Marcelo, founder of Casa Marcelo. “Normally when clients come to us, they are coming to us for design. But there’s also some architecture and construction that needs to happen eventually. So, I thought, why don’t we just partner with people that we know we can work well with together?”

Keep ReadingShow less
architecture

‘The Dark’ turns midwinter into a weeklong arts celebration

‘The Dark’ turns midwinter into a weeklong arts celebration

Autumn Knight will perform as part of PS21’s “The Dark.”

Provided

This February, PS21: Center for Contemporary Performance in Chatham, New York, will transform the depths of midwinter into a radiant week of cutting-edge art, music, dance, theater and performance with its inaugural winter festival, The Dark. Running Feb. 16–22, the ambitious festival features more than 60 international artists and over 80 performances, making it one of the most expansive cultural events in the region.

Curated to explore winter as a season of extremes — community and solitude, fire and ice, darkness and light — The Dark will take place not only at PS21’s sprawling campus in Chatham, but in theaters, restaurants, libraries, saunas and outdoor spaces across Columbia County. Attendees can warm up between performances with complimentary sauna sessions, glide across a seasonal ice-skating rink or gather around nightly bonfires, making the festival as much a social winter experience as an artistic one.

Keep ReadingShow less
performances

Tanglewood Learning Institute expands year-round programming

Tanglewood Learning Institute expands year-round programming

Exterior of the Linde Center for Music and Learning.

Mike Meija, courtesy of the BSO

The Tanglewood Learning Institute (TLI), based at Tanglewood, the legendary summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, is celebrating an expanded season of adventurous music and arts education programming, featuring star performers across genres, BSO musicians, and local collaborators.

Launched in the summer of 2019 in conjunction with the opening of the Linde Center for Music and Learning on the Tanglewood campus, TLI now fulfills its founding mission to welcome audiences year-round. The season includes a new jazz series, solo and chamber recitals, a film series, family programs, open rehearsals and master classes led by world-renowned musicians.

Keep ReadingShow less
education