sex abuse victims to be quiet ‘for the good of diversity’

[Barneyboy]

Owned by China ,yeah yeah all fake news mortblanc

[Mortblanc]

Sorry BB but China only owns a small fraction of the U.S. and Japan owns more than China. Both combined are only a small sliver of the U.S. economy.

I have not checked lately but I believe the largest holder of U.S. investment portions is still the UK.

Again, the media hype does not reveal the truth except as they wish it to be seen.

And there is a point where one owes enough that one can not be allowed to fail or operated against too harshly.

Just imagine what would happen to the Chinese economy if the bottom suddenly fell out of the U.S. cell phone market due to embargo or economic disaster!

[Barneyboy]

Bloody hell MB your a hard man to wind up ,I think your last post diplomatically shut me up mate

[Jonas]

Heck BB, my wife and I are Texans. As soon as our grandson graduates from high school or Texas secedes (whichever comes first) we'll be headed back home.

[CharlesHarris]

But MB is correct. Who Owns the U.S. National Debt? https://www.thebalance.com/who-owns-the-...bt-3306124

The U.S. debt is $19.8 trillion. Most headlines focus on how much the United States owes China, one of the largest foreign owners. What many people don’t know is that the Social Security Trust Fund, aka your retirement money, owns most of the national debt.

How does that work, and what does it mean?

The debt falls into two broad categories: Intragovernmental Holdings and Debt Held by the Public. (Source: "Debt to the Penny," U.S. Treasury, January 26, 2017.)

Intragovernmental Holdings. This is the portion of the federal debt owed to 230 other federal agencies. It totals $5.554 trillion, almost 30 percent of the debt. Why would the government owe money to itself? Some agencies, like the Social Security Trust Fund, take in more revenue from taxes than they need. Rather than stick this cash under a giant mattress, these agencies buy U.S. Treasurys with it.

By owning Treasuries, they transfer their excess cash to the general fund, where it is spent. Of course, one day they will redeem their Treasury notes for cash. The Federal government will either need to raise taxes or issue more debt to give the agencies the money they will need.

Which agencies own the most Treasuries? Social Security, by a long shot.

Here's the detailed breakdown (as of December 31, 2016).

Social Security (Social Security Trust Fund and Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund) - $2.801 trillion
Office of Personnel Management Retirement - $888 billion
Military Retirement Fund - $670 billion
Medicare (Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund) - $294 billion

All other retirement funds - $304 billion
Cash on hand to fund federal government operations - $580 billion. (Source: "Treasury Bulletin, Monthly Treasury Statement, Table 6. Schedule D-Investments of Federal Government Accounts in Federal Securities, U.S. Department of the Treasury, December 2016.)
Debt Held by the Public. The public holds the rest of the national debt ($14.403 trillion). Foreign governments and investors hold nearly half of it. One-fourth is held by other governmental entities. These include the Federal Reserve, as well as state and local governments. Fifteen percent is held by mutual funds, private pension funds and holders of savings bonds and Treasury notes. The remaining 10 percent is owned by businesses, like banks and insurance companies. It's also held by an assortment of trusts, companies, and investors.

Here's the breakdown of holders of the public debt:

Foreign - $6.004 trillion
Federal Reserve - $2.463 trillion
Mutual funds - $1.671 trillion
State and local government, including their pension funds - $905 billion
Private pension funds - $553 billion
Banks - $663 billion
Insurance companies - $347 billion
U.S. savings bonds - $166 billion
Other (individuals, government-sponsored enterprises, brokers and dealers, bank personal trusts and estates, corporate and non-corporate businesses, and other investors) - $1.662 trillion. (Sources: “Factors Affecting Reserve Balance,” Federal Reserve, January 18, 2017. “Treasury Bulletin, Table OFS-2, Ownership of Federal Securities", U.S. Department of the Treasury, December 2016.)

This debt is not only in Treasury bills, notes and bonds but also Treasury Inflation Protected Securities and special state and local government series securities.

As you can see, if you add up the debt held by Social Security and all the retirement and pension funds, nearly half of the U.S. Treasury debt is held in trust for your retirement. If the United States defaults on its debt, foreign investors would be angry, but current and future retirees would be hurt the most.

Why Does the Federal Reserve Own Treasury Debt?
As the nation's central bank, the Federal Reserve is in charge of the country's credit. It doesn't have a financial reason to own Treasury notes. So why did it double its holdings between 2007 and 2014?

That's when it ramped up its open market operations by purchasing $2 trillion in Treasurys.

This quantitative easing stimulated the economy by keeping interest rates low. It helped the United States escape the grips of the recession.

Is the Fed monetizing the debt? Yes, that's one of the effects. The Fed purchases Treasurys from its member banks, using credit it created out of thin air. It has the same effect as printing money. By keeping interest rates low, the Fed helps the government avoid the high-interest rate penalty it would usually incur for excessive debt.

The Fed ended quantitative easing in October 2014. As a result, interest rates on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose from a 200-year low of 1.442 percent in June 2012 to around 2.17 percent by the end of 2014. For more, see Relationship Between Treasury Yields and Mortgage Rates.

What About Foreign Ownership of the Debt?

In June 2017, China owned $1.146 trillion, making it the largest foreign holder of U.S. debt. Japan owns $1.091 trillion. Both Japan and China want to keep the value of the dollar higher than the value of their currencies. That helps keep their exports affordable for the United States, which helps their economies grow. That's why, despite China's occasional threats to sell its holdings, both countries are happy to be America's biggest foreign bankers. China replaced the United Kingdom as the second largest foreign holder on May 31, 2007. That's when it increased its holdings to $699 billion, outpacing the United Kingdom's $640 billion.

Ireland is third, holding $302 billion. Brazil is the fourth largest holder at $270 billion.

The Cayman Islands is fourth, at $254 billion. The Bureau of International Settlements believes it is a front for sovereign wealth funds and hedge funds whose owners don't want to reveal their positions. So are Luxembourg ($212 billion) and Belgium ($98 billion).

The next largest holders are Switzerland, the UK, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Saudi Arabia and India. They each hold between $130 and $244 billion. (Source: “Foreign Holding of U.S. Treasury Securities,” July 18, 2017. "Petrodollars and Global Imbalances," U.S. Treasury, February 2006.)

Data are from various reports that are released at different times. Therefore, the numbers in this article may not add up to the total U.S. debt of $19.8 trillion.

[Barneyboy]

Bloody hell thats a lot of money ,jonas if I lived in Texas mate I would hurry back to ,

[Easy rider]

Sex abuse.
These cases of sex abuse that had been finally acknowledged rip me inside out.
Every time I read about it ,hear about it somewhere in their I also think on why we're they ignored why nothing was actioned was it deliberate ,was it covered up the reasons why?.
We live in terrible times ,their are many terrible crimes going just ignored or too lenient punishments which will only allow its spread.
I have to wonder the real amount of sexual exploitation of young children in the uk alone by these rats.
Not just those who are UN known as yet but those who are known and action is takes those too that don't show up on gov statistics hidden from reality.

I can fully understand the difficulty and problems that followed these cases from the initial reporting to the prosecution of the rats.
Not only the children but families must have Been frightened to death from the repercussions initially and in time to come ?.

Tip of the iceberg comes to mind.
I heart bleeds for all these children suffering sexual abuse .
They have been let down greatly ,it is unforgivable.

[Straight Shooter]

You got that smack on!.... Easy..... it is unforgivable ......and that should mean only one thing.....one answer....death , and No i am NOT kidding about ....let the affected families dish out the justice as they deem fit ......so long as the end result is death....plain and simple ...none of this ten years prison crap out in five shit....why should we ...that means us ....pay to feed and shelter and keep warm these scum bastards.

[Mortblanc]

You are ranting against it.

You want the death penalty for it.

Please define it, and not in general terms.

Does what you think it is match up to what the law says it is.

Sounds like some of you want to execute Father Christmas for having a child sit on his knee.

[Barneyboy]

Bloody right ,always thought Santa Claus was a bit of a perv