My 6 Year Old Gets It, Why Can't Washington DC?

I came home last night just as the morons in D.C. were getting set to vote on increasing the debt ceiling.  Even though I knew it was a done deal, I figured I'd put the news on and see how it was going.  My six year old sat down next to me and asked me what I was watching.

The ensuing conversation provided verification that my son is brilliant and the politicians in DC are fucking morons.



What are you watching Daddy?  That was the simple question posited by my son. 
I'm watching morons send our nation into a doom spiral.  That was the answer I provided.

He asked me again because, clearly, his mind couldn't grasp the concept of a nation or a doom spiral. 

I told him I was watching the people who make our laws vote to destroy our country.

He then asked if that meant we'd all be dead and I explained that, by destroy, I didn't mean bombs and whatnot but, rather, that our lawmakers were voting to do something that would result in very bad things happening now and for a very long time.

What kind of bad things?  was his next question.

I then explained that our country needs money to work.  I explained that the country has to pay for things and they don't have the money to do it so they borrow the money and now they have borrowed as much as they are allowed to borrow. 

He asked why that was bad and I explained that, when you cannot afford something, and you borrow to get it, you are going to have to pay it off eventually.  If you borrow more to pay that off, you owe more and you can never get out of the borrowing until you stop borrowing, cut back on spending and start saving money.

He suggested we send Barack Obama (he always calls him by both names) some money.  I laughed and said that the amount of money he needs is a very large amount and that we shouldn't give him anything because, before long, he's going to take it by raising taxes. 

He asked if they could make more money and I said they could but that would mean that the money we have now is worth less than it was.  He didn't understand this so I explained that if he has the only david wright baseball card, it's worth a lot of money because nobody has it but him.  If they make ten million david wright cards, everyone can have them and then his isn't worth very much.  He must have understood because he moved on to other questions.

Eventually, he asked what is going to happen now that they are borrowing more.

I told him they are borrowing now and they will spend less later and the only thing that will happen is that we will be suffering the same problem again when they borrow all that they are allowed to borrow.  I then told him that our money will be worth less than it is and things we buy will be more expensive.

He seemed puzzled so I said "the milk that you put in your cereal costs three dollars today and in a few months it might cost six dollars."

He got really serious and he said "that's not good.  If everything costs more, there will be more people that sleep on the sidewalk."

"Why is that?" I asked, somewhat surprised.

"Well, if everything costs more, then it will cost more to eat and sleep and people who can't afford it are going to have to sleep somewhere and they will end up sleeping on the sidewalk." 

He then followed with  "that's really bad daddy.  it's sad when people have to sleep on the street."

I told him that it was sad. 

He then asked if we could fire Barack Obama and the people who are borrowing more.

I said that it wouldn't happen.

He said that was too bad and then he said he hopes people don't have to sleep on the sidewalk because our country borrowed too much.

As he turned away I couldn't help but see the grown man that would, one day replace the little boy that just amazed me with his insight and wisdom.

Then he kicked me in the balls and yelled "nut shot" and I knew that my little boy was still in control of the body that was walking away from.