Grasping 700 billion
Filed under: Debt
Seven hundred billion dollars. Like a woman trying to waltz with a sumo wrestler, I'm having trouble wrapping my arms around that figure. To gain some perspective, I tried to envision 700 billion--
Laid end to end, 700 billion dollar bills (66 million miles worth) would stretch from the Earth to Mars and almost all the way back, when the planets are at their closest. Stacking dollar coins would produce a pile 435,000 miles high, well beyond the distance to the Moon. And still no one would want them.
700 billion M&Ms (at 2 grams per chocolatey orb) would be enough to fill 10 one-pound bags for every one of the 300 million Americans. That would be a popular bailout!
700 billion dollars could buy 2009 Lincoln Town Cars for every person in Vermont, North Dakota, Alaska, South Dakota, Delaware, Montana, Rhode Island, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Maine, and Idaho.
The combined weight of every human male in the world is considerably less than 700 billion pounds, even including the players in the NFL.
700 billion dollars could buy 87 McDonald's combo meals for every person on Earth, with change left over for antacids.
My heart has beaten approximately 2,196,917, 208 times since I was born 58 years ago. At this rate, I'd have to live to live to be 20,300 years of age to reach 700 billion heartbeats. I'm willing to go for it, for the sake of research.
Federal expenditures to fight the entire World War II and run the rest of the country, adjusted to the 2000 dollars, were only $1.2 trillion.
My conclusion. 700 billion is a bigggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg number.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
9-25-2008 @ 3:51PM
W. Rau said...
I had a crazy thought about this much money. Could we solve most of all our problems by buying everyone in the US an electric car?
Reply
9-27-2008 @ 5:38PM
doris palmer said...
that would be great plus it would make for a better more contented society.hopely less crime
9-26-2008 @ 2:17PM
Lisa said...
Why not give every US citizen over the age of 18 an equal portion of $700 billion. You could still collect the taxes and they's still have enought money to pay their mortgage, put money away for their kids college, put money into savings, buy stock and purchase new cars which would in turn boost jobs and the economy. Seems like a good idea to me. Why do we keep bailing out people who make mistakes? So they can go to another company and make more? When will we smarten up enough to realize we need to make rules that save us from messes like this and the people who break the rules don't get bailed out anymore - they pay for their mistakes.
Reply
9-25-2008 @ 4:08PM
Glenn said...
How many zeros are in a
BILLION??????
1,000,000,000
This is too sad to be funny.
The next time you hear a politician use the
word 'billion' in a casual manner, think about
whether you want the 'politicians' spending
YOUR tax money.
A billion is a difficult number to comprehend,
but let's try to put it into perspective!
A. A billion seconds ago it was 1959.
B. A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.
C. A billion hours ago our ancestors were
living in the Stone Age.
D. A billion days ago no-one walked on the earth on two feet.
E. A billion dollars ago was only
8 hours and 20 minutes,
at the rate our government
is spending it.
Washington, D. C
< HELLO! >
PRESS 1 for English
Are all your calculators broken??
Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL License Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Federal Income Tax < BR>Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel Permit Tax
Gasoline Tax
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Inventory Tax
IRS Interest Charges (tax on top of tax)
IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Tax
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service charge taxes
Social Security Tax
Road Usage Tax (Truckers)
Sales Taxes
Recreational Vehicle Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone Federal Excise Tax
Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax
Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Tax
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
Telephone Recurring and Non-recurring Charges Tax
Telephone State and Local Tax
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Tax
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft Registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax
SO SAD
Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago...
and our nation was the most prosperous in the world.
We had absolutely no national debt...
We had the largest middle class in the world...
and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.
What happened? Can you spell 'politicians!'
NOW TO BRING IT TO TO CURRENT TIMES
How much is the government requesting for the FINANCIAL CRISIS BAILOUT?
700 Billion Dollars....although some say it might take a TRILLION!
(somebody with plenty of time on their hands
please put everything above in perspective
of a Trillion)
One Trillion Dollars
1,000,000,000,000
What the hell happened?????
Reply
9-25-2008 @ 6:17PM
bmaddigan3 said...
WOE To them, ---->>> Wall St.
The sins (PRIDE & GREED) of the fathers,
Visited Upon the children (Us)
Coupled with a Lot
of 'SELF' Exalting & DECEPTIVE practices
= our Present financial, RED/Black HOLE...
Reply
9-25-2008 @ 8:22PM
Richmond,Mary said...
A solution to the American Financial Problem
Give every person in America Two billion dollars
Think about it. An epic stimulus package. They say it is our money. Ok, there are 3.5 million of us. Give each person an equal share. Let the people decide how to spend it. Stand up and walk out of your cubicle or off your job. Retire.Pay off your bills, pay off your house. That equals liquidity. Send money home to the old country. Take the money and go home to the old country. Simple solution to the Global issues. Flourishing of the most co-operative. Save it. Waste it. Buy what you want. Start your own business. Get a boat. Invest it .Live off the grid. Buy a life insurance policy. Buy health insurance... It does not matter. Give it away. Give it to an endowment. Your choice. Think outside the box.. Problem solved NOW. No world wide depression, No more oppression. The freedom to choose how to spend your time and your money. Choose the sanity, say yes.
Reply
9-25-2008 @ 9:32PM
Bill said...
Im in, that would solve all problems and segrigate the fools from the wise, remember, misery loves company. This would end all claims of discrimination, for all would be equal , from the start, the fools that fall to the way side, will be known , and no excuse for, where"s mine's.
9-26-2008 @ 2:53PM
Avast Ye Swobbie said...
I'm guessing that powers of ten are not your forte.
First, there are 300 million Americans, not 3.5 million. Your population number is off by a factor of 100. (iow, it is approximately 1/100th of the correct number.)
700 billion divided by 300 million is approximately 2,300. Two thousand three hundred dollars per person.
If your population number were correct -- if there were only 3.5 million Americans:
700 billion divided by 3.5 million is 200,000. Two hundred thousand dollars per person. Which is definitely a nice chunk of change in that sparsely-inhabited fictional America of only 3.5 million people, but it ain't no two billion.
To hand out two billion dollars per person from the 700 billion, you'd need to be handing out to a mere 350 people. Now that is a VERY sparsely populated America.
11-08-2008 @ 2:06PM
Dyoung said...
As of this moment our US Census Population Clocks indicate that these are the counts for the US and World.
18:19 GMT (EST+5) Nov 08, 2008
U.S. 305,607,423
World 6,735,564,263
This would be my two step plan for the immediate stimulation of our US economy, ensuring our futures and the futures of up coming generations, create more jobs, not only feed but save our lost ones living on the streets, greatly reduce crime, etc. You get my point.
700,000,000,000 = 700 Billion dollars
Step One:
I would give 750 thousand dollars TAX FREE to each living registered citizen (Man, Woman, Child) of the United States as of this moment regardless of age. However; the money would have to be deposited directly into some type of long term investment account for retirement. It could not be drawn from until the individual met the age of retirement. Those currently in retirement could begin drawing $3,000 per month immediately.
Step Two:
I would give 250 thousand dollars to each living registered citizen (Man, Woman, Child) of the United States as of this moment regardless of age. There would of course be some contingencies with this TAX FREE MONEY. Maintain employment, gain employment, maintain continuing education, or use the money to continue education. With this criteria met, the money could be spent to satisfy the individual such as pay off debt, mortgage assistance, buy a new car, etc; Spend this money on anything, as it will start the economy money machine, increase the value of the US dollar, Stocks and investments will take off in the UPWARD direction, etc. I could go into more details on how it would create a circular revolving economy, but just let your own mind wander with this.
So now we are only in bail out debt of 305 million dollars. Monitor this plan, and give the remaining 395 million back.
Okay the payback of the 305 million we were given. Heavily tax the gains of the invested 750 thousand dollars by 50%. We pay our government back 50% of every dollar gained from the 750K they gave us to invest. They get 50% of the gain; we keep 50% of the gain.
Ohhhh. What a beautiful thing this would be.
Signed,
Just a regular hard working citizen.
9-25-2008 @ 10:08PM
Jim said...
700 billion dollars will produce 700,000 millionaires, wouldn't you like to be one of them. Has anyone bailed you out, helped you pay off your debt or did they tell you to get a second job to feed your family or get ahead. We've been told the economy is strong, the markets sound, the dollar healthy, by the same people who are telling us to pony up now. As soon as the extreme wealthy see a decline in their own respective financial future, they demand bailouts and payoffs that will strap the average taxpayer and their grandchildren yet again. Maybe its time for a financial revolution, place everyone on the level playing field, after all...we're suppose to redistribute the wealth every 50 years. This economy is the result of insufficient leadership from the first day that this administration took office, wrong turn after wrong turn, corporate & political scandals every week, greed and arrogance with no personal responsibility. If this isn't reason for "Change" what else will it take? Thank you for taking the time to read this email. May God be with and bless you.
Reply
9-25-2008 @ 11:09PM
deborah said...
this country a mess because people have turn their back to god so he turning his back at you
Reply
9-26-2008 @ 9:07AM
Alex said...
Separation of church and state. Separation of corporation and state. Easy for CEO's to make millions-easy for corporations to lose billions. Only the strong, fiscally responsible, will survive. Not every day will be late 1990's stock market, not every day will be 2005 real estate market. Sometimes, this nation might need to take a step back, to reassess priorities, and make us think twice about decisions we are about to make. This bailout is enabling our nation's financial infrastructure in the short term and not taking into account the long term impact.
Reply
9-26-2008 @ 12:17PM
AJ said...
When has our government ever considered anything in the long term? i.e. IRAQ.
9-27-2008 @ 3:07PM
Edna Smith said...
I agree.. Give the money to the To the people, they can pay off their debts, and keep their home.
Let the big guy on wall street fend for them selfs. They got into this mess let them get out.The tax payers should not have to pay.. for god knows how long.
Reply
9-26-2008 @ 11:27PM
Matt said...
700 billion.....
lay one dollar bills end to end....this equals 136 round trips to the moon.
If you made 200,000,000 per year...it would take you 3,500 years to make 700 billion.....
Reply
9-28-2008 @ 3:05AM
wayne4me said...
Damit! Ron Paul told you all the truth(!!!) He still is!
You let the media misguide you. They even kept him from some of the Debates.
Take the time to read his Congressional Record of the last 40 years.
He started out as a country doctor who got pissed and wanted to make change.
Obama has Federal Reserve members running his campaign.
McCain, well at least learn about the truth, go to VietnamVeteransAgainstMcCain.com
Their bribing Congressman now by giving them their pet projects to pass the bail-out.
Don't learn from the media but on your own and this wouldn't be happening.
Now were all paying the price for being led like cattle. Forget about FOX NEWS and
go back to CNN & AP News. It's never to late to learn, except this time! Here comes
Super NAPTA and the amero-dollar that they planed on.
Reply
10-07-2008 @ 1:40PM
Fred Holmes said...
When it comes to large numbers, 700 billion is actually not all that much.
I mean, that's really only approximately 15 Bill Gates net worth units.
However, if I offered to give you 1 dollar every second (86,400 dollars per day), you'd never live to collect 700 billion dollars. The time it would take is about 21,000 years. See next paragraph.
On the other hand, if I offered to give you 21,452 dollars per second, it'd only take me a year to give you 700 billion dollars.
I'm not persuaded that you'd spend it very well, though.
Reply
11-11-2008 @ 7:22PM
Dyoung said...
As of this moment our US Census Population Clocks indicate that these are the counts for the US and World.
18:19 GMT (EST+5) Nov 08, 2008
U.S. 305,607,423 = US Population - 305 million, 607 thousand, 4 hundred, and 23 people – Including every Man, Woman, and Child
World 6,735,564,263
This would be my two step plan for the immediate stimulation of our US economy, ensuring our futures and the futures of up coming generations, create more jobs, not only feed but save our lost ones living on the streets, greatly reduce crime, etc. You get my point.
700,000,000,000 = 700 Billion dollars
Step One:
I would give 750 thousand dollars TAX FREE to each living registered citizen (Man, Woman, Child) of the United States as of this moment regardless of age. However; the money would have to be deposited directly into some type of long term investment account for retirement. It could not be drawn from until the individual met the age of retirement. Those currently in retirement could begin drawing $3,000 per month immediately.
Step Two:
I would give 250 thousand dollars to each living registered citizen (Man, Woman, Child) of the United States as of this moment regardless of age. There would of course be some contingencies with this TAX FREE MONEY. Maintain employment, gain employment, maintain continuing education, or use the money to continue education. With this criteria met, the money could be spent to satisfy the individual such as pay off debt, mortgage assistance, buy a new car, etc; Spend this money on anything, as it will start the economy money machine, increase the value of the US dollar, Stocks and investments will take off in the UPWARD direction, etc. I could go into more details on how it would create a circular revolving economy, but just let your own mind wander with this.
So now we are only in bail out debt of 305 million dollars. Monitor this plan, and give the remaining 395 million back.
Okay the payback of the 305 million we were given. Heavily tax the gains of the invested 750 thousand dollars by 50%. We pay our government back 50% of every dollar gained from the 750K they gave us to invest. They get 50% of the gain; we keep 50% of the gain.
Ohhhh. What a beautiful thing this would be.
Signed,
Just a regular hard working concerned citizen.
Dyoung
Reply