How much is 114 Trillion dollars?

[MikeH]

http://www.wtfnoway.com/

[Zoetstofzoetje]

the numbers only make sense in relation to each other - when you subject it to these visualizations, you might mistake cash for something real.

oh, wait...

[Aeson]

We could always just print a $114 trillion bill. Save the trees! (wait, don't do it now... I need to exchange for some pesos first.)

[giblets]

114 trillion U.S. dollars = 69.9429413 trillion British pounds

[Provost Harrison]

Will you take a cheque for it?

[giblets]

I'm not clear on what "unfunded liabilities" are supposed to be.

[Provost Harrison]

Bloody expensive, that's what they are

[Cort Haus]

I'm not clear on what "unfunded liabilities" are supposed to be.

From looking at the comments, it was suggested that the last graphic was not actually representative of the current situation, but the previous one is.

[giblets]

So they just felt like making a graphic where the stack of money was really really big and they called it "unfunded liabilities"?

[Cort Haus]

I dunno really, I'm ****ing clueless when it comes to money.
Let's face it though - a pile of money higher than the WTC looks pretty cool - and very scary when it represents a debt.

[KrazyHorse]

Unfunded liabilities are liabilities not supported by government issuance of debt. For example, projected deficits from medicare and social security.

[giblets]

Uhh... so they're saying the national debt will eventually be $114 trillion larger? What's the time frame for these projected deficits?

[OzzyKP]

Am I correct that when people talk about unfunded liabilities they just look at what we potentially owe, not what we will potentially bring in, right? So expenses without revenue. Or am I wrong about that?

[Egbert]

I'm not clear on what "unfunded liabilities" are supposed to be.

Put simplisticly:
Amounts you expect to pay in the future but you don't have the money on hand right now.

I presume the amounts government expects to pay you for your pension are included in the estimated liabilities. Government has not yet set any money aside to cover your pension thus the description "unfunded liabilities". At some time in the future they will have to come up with the cash (from somewhere, presumably the annual tax revenues) to cover your pension cheque each fortnight.

Those unfunded liabilities might be amounts payable over a 50 year timeframe but they will also be pulling in taxes over that timeframe. The $114t is rather meaningless in isolation. It does indicate, on the face of it, a major long term financial headache for the government. (For starters, it doesn't say whether the liability is in todays dollars or just undiscounted dollar amounts payable whenever in the future).

[Egbert]

Unfunded liabilities are liabilities not supported by government issuance of debt. For example, projected deficits from medicare and social security.

Idiotic answer. Debt is a liability. You are therefore saying an unfunded liability is a liability not supported by another liability. You need an asset to support a liability. Fvckwit.