Richard Smith
Far too many public statements are taken as fact and go unchallenged, such as, “The country is on the verge of bankruptcy,” to “We are saddling future generations with crushing levels of debt,” to “China has undue leverage over us since they own most of our national debt.” Statements as these range from being wild distortions to complete nonsense.A well-informed populace needs to push back on half-truths, untruths, obfuscations, and demagoguery, with facts and empirical evidence at their fingertips—and that is the point of this book.Can you answer these questions? What is the total asset base of the United States? $150 trillion? $50? $20? What is the total net worth of the United States? $100 trillion? $50? $10? What percent of the federal US debt is owned by China? 35%? 20%? 5%? What is household consumer credit as % of all national assets? 30%? 15%? 3%? Understanding National Wealth provides the evidence and perspective for a more honest, objective conversation. As the adage goes, “Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but not their own set of facts.” Fragmented information about the country’s financial position is in many different places and forms. Therefore, “one cannot see the forest through the trees”. This book provides a succinct summary of where the nation stands financially by bringing together and consolidating the best available data into a national balance sheet containing all private and public sector assets and liabilities. In short, this breakthrough perspective properly analyzes the nation’s economy and financial health. Understanding National Wealth is a comprehensive first-of-its-kind financial report on the nation, with the specifics of the country’s wealth well-documented and analyzed.
