With so much instability in the economic landscape of America, it came as no surprise to many when the National Debt Clock situated in New York City’s Time Square ran out of digital space to record the skyrocketing debt figure.
Just a few weeks ago, the Times Square Debt Clock, a fixture since of the district since it was first put in place in 1989, was altered by removing the digital dollar sign to make room for the extra digit. (the ‘1′ in 10 trillion) The national debt is currently hovering around $10.2 trillion dollars.
When the clock was first created 19 years ago by the Manhattan real estate developer, Seymour Durst, it was meant to inform the public about level of national debt. (At the time, it was only $2.7 trillion.) Since Durst’s death in 1995, the clock has been maintained by the Durst Organization, headed by his son Douglas Durst.
Currently, a new clock is being constructed to replace the old one. According to the Associated Press, the new device will include two extra digit spaces; in other words, enough room to record numbers in the quadrillion-dollar range. It will be ready by 2009.
This measure seems a matter of common sense when you consider where the economy-and the national debt-are going. The rate of debt growth has increased by more than $500 billion each year since 2003 fiscal year. More importantly, since September 28, 2008, the rate of daily increase has totaled about $3.34 billion. Add to these amounts, the recent $700 billion bailout and a national debt of $11 trillion or more is quite possible for the 2009 fiscal year end.
The debt clock is very visible symbol of the United States’ financial status. The influence of such a change cannot be calculated precisely.
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