As the powerful ad, “Child’s Play,” made clear (though not to Superbowl viewers), deficits mean mortgaging the next generation’s future. As BusinessWeek summarizes:

Meantime, financial
pressures on younger Americans are mounting as the price tag of major
expenses — education, health insurance, and housing — rises sharply.

What are the consequences for our generation?

1. Tax payback, when the balance between people collecting Social
   Security and working taxpayers goes out of whack (“In 1960, there were
   16 workers for every Social Security recipient. Now, that ratio is 3.3
   to 1, and by 2030 it will be 2 to 1.”);
2. Rising interest rates due to the ballooning deficit will make it more expensive for us to buy homes and goods;
3. Lower benefits, both from a bankruptcy-bound Medicare/Medicaid program and from shrinking employer plans.

It’s clear to me that intergenerational warfare – not class, not
race, not “culture” – is the driving force behind the national
cut-taxes-increase-spending agenda. Not only are we outnumbered, but
also outvoted thanks to the generational voting gap.

Put it this way: if you could charge whatever you wanted to your
credit card, knowing that you would be dead before it had to be paid
off, wouldn’t you go on a shopping spree, too?

Thanks, Boomers.