When you owe the bank $100,000,you're in trouble,when you owe the bank

[Swede]

$1,000,000 ,the bank is in trouble. So,who are the USA's bankers?

[Loonman]

1. China

China owns the lion's share of American debt.

[soothsayer]

2. THAT's the real war being waged against the US by China

thanks, shrubby

[Loonman]

4. Not that they would, they make too much money in the USA,

But, the Chinese could yank the economic rug out from under our feet at any moment.

Not like they ever would, but food for thought. Saudi Arabia owns a lot of property and their royal family does a lot of investment banking, here.

[brainshrub]

5. Umm, to be fair you can blame Clinton as well.

The outsourceing of Americas wealth was possible due to the hard work of both parties working on behalf of the corporate elites.

[Sanity Claws]

8. But Shrub has borrowed more than all other

presidents combined. Clinton balanced the budget. How can you blame Clinton?

[pitohui]

6. the bank is not in trouble so much

it just means that china seems to believe more in usa than we do these days

you could go and perfectly well buy an i-bond or a t-bill or another investment in usa if you wanted

the chinese believe in our future, they are invested in our future, this is actually a good thing which means it is less likely we'll ever get in a shooting war w. ea. other because of the high financial costs to our respective elites


now if you saw the chinese or other foreigners stop buying our debt, then it would be cause for concern

[Trish1168]

15. Wrong, Japan owns more, but China is catching up

That's my understanding.

[bigbrother05]

3. Our kids and grandkids

They are the ones that will have to pay the piper.

[flamin lib]

9. Don't know about that.

I'm paying a pretty heavy price for it right now. Job went to China 4 years ago. Lost $65k income, health care, 401k and immediately had $20k in medical bills. Spent another $20k starting a new business, $40k on inventory and last month $2500 on chapter 13.

Yeah, I'm pissed at Bill for not doing anything to stem that "giant sucking sound".

[noahmijo]

7. I'm 24 that would include me which is why I tell every 50 something

year old Republican who tries to lecture me on how I am young and naive to be thinking the way I think I tell em their bullshit way of thinking is too fucking expensive for me to adopt.

[Cleita]

11. Good for you.

You are wise and knowledgable beyond your years and this is from a plus fifty old woman.

[noahmijo]

13. Why thank you and to be fair I shake the fist at 20 somethings too

I mean I tell them the same thing most of them have no concept of what it's like to struggle and have to make it on your own. These types are the pampered ones you know who I am talking about, and really they piss me off almost as much because although they're cutting their own throats they are taking me with them. I seem to display my outrage with the older crowd though namely because I loathe the thought of them sitting around on their retired asses without a care in the world with the fat government pension that those bastard liberals :sarcasm: made possible and here they are screwing with MY generation.

[Cleita]

10. Well, technically, your debt is considered an asset by the bank

and your bank savings and checking accounts are a liability. Although they use your money, their liability, to create an asset, your loan. This is because you can demand your savings at any time, a thing that happened after the stock market crash of 1929. The rush on the banks of people withdrawing their money forced many of them into bankruptcy and helped lead to the Great Depression.

Obviously, they couldn't give everyone their money back because they had loaned it out. This led to the federal government insuring each account up to $100,000 in case this ever happened again.

[Bake]

12. True, but since you brought it up

If your loan, which IS booked as an asset by the bank, goes BAD (i.e., you default), the bank has to write down the value of that asset, or write it off entirely. If a big enough asset goes bad, the bank takes a huge loss.

Hence the wisdom of the OP -- if you owe the bank $100,000, you're in trouble; if you owe the bank a million, the bank's in trouble. One factor in the S&L debacle was the default of many borrowers on loans made for real estate speculation. Put the lenders in a world of hurt.

Bake

[Cleita]

14. Having written off many bad debts on the ledger that were noncollectable

I know what you speak of. I have also known businesses never to write off an noncollectable A/R because it makes the business look better on the balance sheet if they are selling the business. It's legal too. Let the buyer beware is a very operative axiom here.