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until our economy knows how to manage its own debt AND truly reflect the numbers that show the economy’s health or sickness with real money instead of debt erroneously reflected as “dollars”?

In several cities around the world, there are national debt clocks—electronic billboards which supposedly show the amount of money owed by the government. Some also attempt to show the money owed per capita or per family. There is a significant level of fluctuation day-to-day, both up and down, so any “clocks” must be continually re-set with proper values.

Historically, the national debt has risen in periods of war when the costs of war have generally been financed by borrowing rather than raising taxes. The entire Reagan presidency was during peacetime so there was not any war cost involved.

During the post World War II era, oil prices in the United States have averaged $23.57 per barrel, which is already adjusted for inflation to 2006 dollars. Without price controls, the U.S oil price would have been over $25.56. During the same post war period,

the average price for domestic and adjusted world price of crude oil was $18.43 in 2006 prices. This exactly proves that only 50% of the time from 1947 to 2006 have oil prices exceeded the $18.43 per barrel mark.

It was only then in March 28, 2000 when they accepted the $22-$28 price band for OPEC’s supply of oil, did oil prices exceed the $23.00 per barrel in response to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. With limited supply of crude oil, OPEC abandoned its price band and for almost 3 years, OPEC was in no position to stem a surge in oil prices which was similar to that of the late 1970’s.
 History have shown that during the 19th century, Britain was the only world power to reduce its national debt. In 1890 the world total of public indebtedness had risen to an estimated $27.5 billion, an increase in a little less than a century of more than 1000 percent.

Thereafter the increase continued until the end of World War I, after which indebtedness declined. Following the onset of the Great Depression in 1929, public debts rose as governments resorted to public works to provide jobs for the unemployed. World War II (1939-1945) caused national indebtedness to increase significantly again.

Beginning in the 1970s, inflation, high interest rates, and a tenfold rise in the price of oil contributed to the increasing world debt. Developing nations borrowed heavily from international capital markets to finance their import bills. The borrowing, primarily in the form of floating interest rate loans from major banks, precipitated a debt crisis in 1982 when worldwide economic growth fell. Several developing nations, including Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina, had to adopt austerity programs in order to continue to service their debts.