Rob A. wrote:

Your national security is already compromised by crushing debt. A
successful major terrorist attack could trigger economic collapse.
(Consider the
American dollar. Currently about 70% of the world's currency reserves
are in US dollars. This preponderence of your currency is due to the
fact that petroleum is bought and sold virtually exculsively in
American dollars. Everybody has to convert their EUROs, Yen, Pesos,
whatever.. to dollars to buy their oil. This means that the American
dollar is insulated from the vagueries of the money markets. The US
treasury can print as many dollars as it likes with impunity. And so
issues like national debt don't matter. It's a bit of an
oversimplification but the fact remains that dollars can be produced
to cover any shortfall in the budget.

Within a year, this will swith over to Euros as the international
standard. What can we do about it? Nothing at all - the EU has
more people, more resources, and more GNP, as well as more stability
and cooperation with the rest of the world.

The second this happens, we loose 30% of our dollar's value. In
a year or two, *we* will be the ines having to convert our currency
to Euros.

Oh - we also will loose tons of political and economic leverage
in most smaller nations. Why deal with the big bad thug cramming
Coca-Cola and Nike down your thrat when the EU leaves you pretty
much alone?


So where am I going with this? Did you know that Venezuela among
others is campaigning OPEC to accept EUROS as well as American
dollars? Any sudden loss of confidence in the US dollar will make
this proposition far more attractive. And so "Defacto International
Currency" will no longer be a label you can claim for your dollar. You
will no longer be able to subsidise your debt with the virtually
infinite value of your dollar internationally. Hence 1/2 a tillion
dollars will be more than just some paper you need to print to cover a
budget shortfall.

Our credit rating will also no longer be propped up by it. Expect us
to fall to an "A" rating, or about 2-3 notches down the scale. 15%
loans will be almost impossible to get at the local bank as a result,
which is how Greenspan and others have been pushing us along so far.
With that no longer working, we're screwed.