State of USA, Incorporated

KPCB's Mary Meeker has created an extensive report (266 pages) on America's fiscal condition, evaluated as if it were a business. The resulting picture is, to put it bluntly, disturbing.

By the standards of any public corporation, USA Inc.’s financials are discouraging.

True, USA Inc. has many fundamental strengths. On an operating basis (excluding Medicare and Medicaid spending and one-time charges), the federal government’s profit & loss statement is solid, with a 4% median net margin over the last 15 years. But cash flow is deep in the red (by almost $1.3 trillion last year, or -$11,000 per household), and USA Inc.’s net worth is negative and deteriorating... the trends are clear, and critical warning signs are evident in nearly every data point we examine.





This analysis can’t ignore our dependence on entitlements. Almost one-third of all Americans have grown up in an environment of lean savings and heavy reliance on government healthcare subsidies. It’s not just a question of numbers – it’s a question of our responsibilities as citizens…and what kind of society we want to be.

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