The document discusses how the U.S. national debt per citizen has increased from $20,000 in 2000 to $53,000 in 2013. To visualize this growth, it represents the debt as an increasing weight for Uncle Sam, such that the $20,000 debt in 2000 equated to 150 pounds, while the $53,000 debt in 2013 equates to 397 pounds. It concludes by suggesting Uncle Sam needs to go on a diet to reduce the national debt.

1. “Big, Fat Uncle Sam and the U.S. National Debt” By Tom Tierney
29 May 2013
If you use the “time machine” function on the www.usdebtclock.org website, you can compare
the U.S. National Debt from the year 2000, to the current debt of 2013.
In 2000, the U.S. debt was roughly $20K per U.S. citizen. Currently in 2013, the U.S. debt is
roughly $53K per U.S. citizen. Neither of these figures include “unfunded liabilities” (social
security, health care etc.), which hopefully get addressed before they have to be funded.
So, what would the iconic “Uncle Sam” image look like if he visually represented the
comparison of $20K debt per U.S. citizen in 2000 versus the $53K today?
Let’s say “Uncle Sam” weighed around 150 lbs in 2000 ($20K), he would weigh roughly 397 lbs
in 2013 ($53K), weight increase in proportion to debt increase (53K/20K = 2.65, 150 x 2.65 =
397.50).
Here’s Uncle Sam’s weight gain, in proportion to the National Debt per U.S. citizen, over the
past 13 years:
YEAR U.S. Debt Per Citizen Uncle Sam’s Weight
2000 ~$20,000 150 lbs
2004 ~$24,000 180 lbs
2008 ~$31,000 232 lbs
2013 ~$53,000 397 lbs
How’s that for a visual?
Needless to say, I think “Uncle Sam” needs to go on a diet.
Tom Tierney lives in Encinitas, CA and is a member of Tech Coast Angels (www.techcoastangels.com).
Also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tech_coast_angels for more background information on the TCA.