The debt and the deficit

The authors explain what national debts and deficits are, and what they are not. One thing they are not nearly as big as we think. Another thing they are not is a burden on the shoulders of our grandchildren. And one thing they are is a potential means of financing economic growth. Heilbroner and Bernstein do not shrug aside the debt and deficit. "The only remedy for our present frightened state of mind", they write, "is explanations that are simple but accurate, facts that will defuse unreasoning panic, and arguments that will stand up under the most skeptical examination." This book presents a "view of such matters as the national debt and who owns it, the deficit and how to measure it, the difference between public spending for investment and for consumption, and the view that public-debt financing crowds out private financing." (Christ Sci Monit) Index.