Heading for the fiscal cliff

Wow.  This is horrible journalism, grossly misleading and misinforming.  Unsigned. 

Who wrote this anonymous claptrap?  It's just a bunch of internet scare talk, all sky-is-falling and no real substance or documentation at all.  MSN Money is just another media outlet getting mileage out of the "fiscal cliff" lingo without really delivering any enlightening information.

First of all, what do you mean, MSN Money, by "Cost" ??  Cost to individual tax return filers, or cost to the government?  It seems to me that what you define as "Cost" is, in actuality, increased tax revenue to Uncle Sam, something the government must have as a necessary part of the budget balancing act if we are to resolve our federal budget problems.

Yes, it is certainly true that deficit spending stimulates the economy.  Keynes wrote about it more than 75 years ago.

It is also true that deficit spending cannot go on forever without disaster eventually occurring.

Yes, it may also be true that if we simply allow the "fiscal cliff" to happen, it will cause an economic slowdown, probably an actual recession.  Yes, that causes hardship. 

But what if we do what you are trying to scare us into, that is, continue without increasing taxes and reducing spending?  More of the same ol' same ol'.  And yes, our congress and President may be relied upon to do that, because no elected politician seems willing to take the difficult measures necessary to resolve the issue..

A 10% cutback in federal discretionary spending is a crisis?  Bull.  Families, businesses, towns, and states have faced far worse than that in recent years.  Hardship, yes.  Disaster, no.  Many federal agencies would be able to cut 10% and be the better off for it.  The rest will survive.

Taxes are a hardship and they slow down the economy, true.  But it's something we have to do, isn't it?  What is the alternative?  Eliminate all the spending regardless of whether or not it is important?

If MSN Money had any real economic writers on it's staff, they would research answers to some real questions we citizens need to know: 

What are the real trade offs if we allow the "fiscal cliff"? 

Will a tax increase and subsequent slowdown in the economy be so dampening that it wiould cause a falloff of tax revenue, as say, economist Laffer would suggest? 

If the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) says the economy will still increase, but at a slightly lower rate, even with increased taxes and decreased federal spending, is it still undesirable?

Please, MSN Money, get some journalistic balls and write something more than superficial bandwagon cliches. 

By the way, folks, regardless of your politics, the debt limit must be raised until we stop the deficit.  Stop being idiotic.  The fate and safety and security of the United States depends on our ability to fulfill our financial obligations. 

To not raise the debt ceiling means the federal government falls into default.  Anyone who fails to understand that we are endangering the country to even threaten to default is endangering us. 

Remember, our the American revolution was in more danger because of our inability to raise money, than our ability to raise an army. How long do you think our military or our country would function if we can't pay our bills?

How is the Government going to write a bailout check for this train wreck.....