Budget wound barely a sliver

According to some, cutting $61 billion from federal spending will cripple the economy and destroy our “recovery.” Doing simple math, $61 billion is about 4 percent of the DEFICIT spending for 2011; when placed against the projected $3.83 trillion total budget it’s less than 2 percent. A 2 percent cut will crush our nation? Please.

The budget already includes: pensions, $787.6 billion; health care, $898 billion; education, $140.9 billion; military, $928.5 billion; and welfare, $464.6 billion. Taking $61 billion from any of these amounts still leaves more money than entire economies of most other nations. Yet we’re doomed?

What about the $250.7 billion we presently pay on our national debt, the skyrocketing cost of food and energy as the Fed monetizes our debt, causing inflation to wipe out the value of the dollar?

Being so concerned, shouldn’t they offer up real solutions to the problems like pulling our troops from two unwinnable wars and stop being the world’s cop or deal with unsustainable Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security? Sixty-one billion dollars isn’t even a good starting point to save this country from financial Armageddon.

Steven Neill

Spokane Valley