is there a under limit to the worlds debt ?

[mapuc]

On this page you can see every countries debt and the whole worlds debt.

Made me wonder Is there a "under limit"? Meaning how deep can our worlds debt be before something happens ? And what will happen ?

http://www.nationaldebtclocks.org/#home

Markus

[Betonov]

75% of Slovenias GDP is debt :o :/\\!!

Brb, I need to masacre some people.

[Oberon]

Pity they didn't do one for Argentina...would have been enlightening. :dead:

[fireftr18]

Funny thing is, all these countries owe each other. :hmmm:

[danasan]

I think, the debt is just a figure, which could affect one of the next of our generations.

As long as you can pay the interest for that amount of debt, you are fine.

Sounds like fatalism?

Yes, it is...

[mapuc]

When will all this collapse ? Will it be so huge that the crash in 1929 will be like a mouse to an elephant ? in compare

Markus

[Onkel Neal]

yeah, who do they owe all this money to? There must be some country out there holding all the markers let's go get them.

[Betonov]

yeah, who do they owe all this money to? There must be some country out there holding all the markers let's go get them.

You find them and start the siege.
I'll come a day later with the trebuchet and rancid cows.

[Oberon]

It is rather like building the scaffold for your own execution.

Pity we can't just have a reset one year, where all the debts are wiped out and we start from fresh.

[Gargamel]

75% of Slovenias GDP is debt :o :/\\!!

Brb, I need to masacre some people.

Wouldn't that just raise the % of the GDP?

[Gargamel]

This makes no sense.... If you owe everybody something, and they all owe you something... then..... Somebodies got to be ahead..... Who do we all owe this too? Mars?

[danasan]

I would suspect that there are banks involved.

If that is true, we would owe the money to the shareholders of those banks at the end.

As we all could become shareholders - even on a small scale - we would owe it to ourselves.

Naaa, that's just silly....

[Moonlight]

What would happen if the countries in that link refused to pay any more of it back. Would there be any wars because of it, or would it lead to another financial meltdown to make any other look like a monkeys tea party.

[Oberon]

What would happen if the countries in that link refused to pay any more of it back. Would there be any wars because of it, or would it lead to another financial meltdown to make any other look like a monkeys tea party.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argentine_debt_restructuring

If all the countries refused to pay it back, then yes it would probably make the 2008 crash look like a walk in the park.

[Torplexed]

What would happen if the countries in that link refused to pay any more of it back. Would there be any wars because of it, or would it lead to another financial meltdown to make any other look like a monkeys tea party.

The trouble with a small nation not paying back it's debts is that, quickly, they will run out of institutions willing to lend to them in the future.( The same happens with individuals BTW). Fine, if you just want to get away with it once, not so good if your economy relies on constant borrowing to fund basic services.

Of course, the bigger the defaulter, the bigger the shockwaves.

[Catfish]

I would not care about this b.

Money is just an artificial human invention, it is not worth anything as such.
Especially when it is not covered by real material things.
It is just an invention. An alien would probably raise an eyebrow, about this concept.

And interest, is the dumbest thing since the invention of money, it destroys the whole system. Cyclical crises are pre-programmed.
With only one percent interest, and Jesus investing a cent, he would now own the value 20 billions of earths, in pure gold, after 2000 years.


Usually you need a war, or a currency reform, to set all back to zero.
For the the next 90 to 120 years.

[Torplexed]

An alien would probably raise an eyebrow, about this concept.


Of course they would. They're all trading in gold pressed latinum. :D

Money is just a human invention to make exchanges easier and what alternative to money is there? Barter doesn't work as I can't see lugging in a cartload of potatoes to make a down payment on a new printer. Altruism won't work, as humans are innately selfish and greedy, and coercion doesn't work. Monetary systems have numerous flaws, but idealism isn't a virtue in reality. You could make the argument that money is required because human nature is lacking. And when people can't use money to get what they want or need, they use violence. You really can't get rid of money without changing human nature first.

[Eichhörnchen]

I agree with all of that; essentially, money is the portable, physical token of a promise (UK citizens are familiar with the words "I promise to pay the bearer on demand..." printed on our banknotes). Without some proof of a fiscal promise, we have to rely on others to keep to their word. And we all know better than that...

[Jimbuna]

Zimbabwe must take some beating surely....certainly in terms of inflation....they've abandoned their own currency in preference to the US $.