It's our money

It was reported last week that U.S. government debt has surpassed $30 trillion. That amount is incomprehensible. And, the politicians in Washington are trying to figure out how they can spend trillions more.

That's our money, folks, and our debt and the debt of generations to come. Much of what we have borrowed to fund this irresponsible spending has come from the Chinese and Japanese and they expect to be repaid with interest and, as interest rates go up, so does the cost to borrow it.

It has been estimated that every percentage point increase in rates adds $100 billion or more to our debt costs. And where does that money come from? That's right, you and me and our heirs. It's not the "government's money" Congress is spending. It's ours and we should expect them to spend it wisely. Yes, there are many useful programs that would be nice to fund, but we can't afford them all. As all of us have come to learn in life, we can have no more than we can afford. It's time our representatives in Washington understand that.

James E. Robinson

Arlington Heights