Final Word from Tuesday, November 2, 2004
Since George W. Bush became president, the U.S. jobless rate has risen from 4.2% to 5.4% (+29%), the budget has gone from a $281bn surplus to a $412bn deficit, and the national debt has jumped from $5.7 trillion to $7.4 trillion (+30%), yet Bush is likely to win the popular vote today. (What happens in the electoral college could be another matter.) America is the most indebted country in the world and needs to borrow $2bn every day from foreigners to keep itself going. It's using other people's money to expand its own prosperity and to dictate foreign policy across the globe. Americans who don't want the (overextended) American empire or their own (fragile) prosperity to end will vote for Bush. At the same time, a Bush victory will only speed up the process. Should Czechs care? Yes, because understanding what's happening in the U.S. today is key for planning for tomorrow. John Kerry