Are we finally getting around to working on possible solutions after all the philosophy? I agree very much with what you wrote here. As I see it, the possible solutions are limited to something like the following:
1. Increase GNP, everything stays the same.
2. Increase GNP, make drastic changes
Right now, we are following the first option because there is no will to actually confront fiscal reality. On the left, we expect government to solve big problems and demand that the citizens participate fairly and according to their abilities. On the right, government is viewed as the enemy and no one is expected to modify their behavior but the poor.
Sorry, but that's not what I see. On the left, I see calls for additional government programs that will have to be funded by ever higher taxation, and no real call at all for addressing the debt or the deficit. You realize, if we were not so deeply in debt, we'd have no finanical difficulty. The interest on the debt alone is enough to put us in dire financial straits.
On the right, at least there is a general call for financial restraint, and not a continuous call for additional alms for the indigent.
What you would have as a result of this is a grasp of the options, the costs and the probability of success of whatever options you put through this model. Then, someone has to make the call. I am reminded of this whenever I think of Ike making the call to go on that day to Normandy. He did the best he could and then made the call.
To me, the sole option is the one that has yet to be put on the table. We have to cut programs. We cannot educate the children of every state, and feed the poor, and provide retirement plans for one and all AND conduct the esssential functions of government. We're a sinking ship, or at least one that's developing a list, and some cargo has to be thrown overboard. Perhaps those programs can be reconstituted if the financial picture improves, but we've got to ditch them for now, from the cheap ones like NPR to the expensive ones like the Department of Education.
I used to be poor and I drove old cars. They broke down a lot, and my resources were limited. When you have to make repairs, you fix the parts that keep the car on the road, and worry about the air conditioning later. That's our status now, we're going to need to do without the air conditioning for now.