"If you read the wikipedia article you'll note that net debt is only $80 billion, not $320 billion." If you read my comment more thoroughly you'll note I said

"If you read the wikipedia article you'll note that net debt is only $80 billion, not $320 billion." If you read my comment more thoroughly you'll note I said net debt is -$80 billion and that $300 billion is an estimate from 2009 (which wikipedia agrees). "It's sustainable because when the economy grows the debt becomes a lower proportion of the total budget which makes it simpler to pay off." No it's not. Yes it's a lower proportion, by what, one percentage point a year, or maybe even negative one depending on the interest on the bonds (growth - interest). I'll bet next recession they'll be at something like -$10 billion, the next one after that -$35 billion and it just rolls downhill from there. "I don't think either Australian party is proposing a balanced budget." You're right, maybe I'm too optimistic. The system is no good at all. I would really hope some day I will be able to participate in a direct democracy government. "The (current, left wing) Labor party is getting criticised" The government is getting criticised for everything it does. And? Reply to earlier comment: "The US, OTOH had expanding deficits. It is time people stopped blaming "the system", and assigned the blame where it should lay. It is the fault of one administration, and one administration only that the US economy is in the state that it is." Okay it's Bush's fault, what now?