Whare are the US Downgrades

In the Summer of 2011 the US was warned by Moody's and the S&P that if the US didn't get it's financial house in order by reducing the amount of debt they would downgrade the US even further.  Here we are a year later and nothing has been done by Congress to address the debt issue.  So my question is where are the downgrades?

How did Colorado Shooter get Tear Gas?

I was asked by fellow co workers wouldn't it be difficult for someone to get tear gas?  Unfortunately it's not as you can see at http://www.keepshooting.com/clear-out-2oz-tear-gas-grenade.html

For $10 you can buy a tear gas grenade if you are 21 years of age?  The tear gas grenade contains 2oz of military grade OC/CS in a 1%/1% solution which will deliver a fog to incapacitate a large crowd.  The 2oz. units disperses in 8-10 seconds and covers an area approximately 9300 cubic feet in 30 seconds.

It's troubling to me that as long as you are over 21 years of age you can buy tear gas grenades it appears.  The site doesn't say whether they do background checks or not.
 

Federal Deficits

The long term chart of Monthly Federal Deficits is shown below which are in millions of dollars.  Obama finally got a positive month in April (point A) however the last two months have trended negative again.

The President and Congress Just Don't Get It

Over 1 Trillion Dollars has been used to bailout the Banks but nothing is being done to help people who are underwater in their homes or are in substantial debt.  To be fair a plan should be implemented that helps everyone not just those who are underwater or in substantial debt.  I would propose a plan that includes  the following:

1. If a homeowner is severely underwater let the loan be refinanced at fair value with a 30 Year Fixed Rate not to exceed 4%.
2. Allow every homeowner who isn't severely underwater to refinance at a 30% Fixed Rate of  2% based on what they currently owe (No Cashouts are allowed).
3.  For those with non-collateral debt (including Student Loans) allow a one time write off not to exceed $100,000.  Also if you take the one time write off you will adhere to strict credit restrictions over a 10 Year Period such that you will not be allowed to have more than 2 credit cards with a combined maximum amount available of $2000.  Also if you want to get a car or a home you must be able to document your income and not buy something you can't afford.    
4.  For those who have no debt there has to be some reward.  I would propose that you get a $10,000 Tax Deduction for each year over the next 5 Years which adds up to $50,000.  After this you will get a $5,000 Tax Deduction each year thereafter for an additional 5 Years which adds another $25,000.  Thus over a 10 Year Period you will be given a total of $75,000 in Tax Deductions for not being in substantial Debt.

I know this is a rather simple plan but nobody in Congress or the President has proposed any type of major plan to help everyone in this country.

Social Security is in Big Trouble!!!

There is an excellent article by Bruce Krasting on how Social Security may blow up much faster than most think.  Read his article at http://brucekrasting.blogspot.com/2012/07/bernanke-my-goal-is-to-destroy-social.html

The key quote from the article states "Based on current law, all Social Security benefit payments must be cut by (approximately) 25% when the Social Security Trust Fund (SSTF) is exhausted"

Debt Ceiling will be reached before the end of the Year

Based on the latest data the US is now only 538 Billion from the Debt Ceiling.   Thus it's entirely possible the Debt Ceiling of 16,394,000 will be reached by November leading to another showdown in Congress.