1. Suppose you begin counting the current federal debt, $1 at a time. If you could count $1 each second, how long would it take to complete the count? Describe how you come up with this value and provide an answer in years. Does this number help us understand how large the debt is? Is this trend in debt and deficit sustainable? You can also comment on the debt per person 2. Compare the debt of the federal government to a small business or family budget. The federal government will take in $2.7 trillion in 2013 and the total debt will be over 17 trillion. This is the same as a family with $50,000 income having over $300,000 of debt. At some point a family or business has to pay off its debt. Use the monthly payment calculator from the gr financial management spreadsheet to calculate how long it will take the federal government to pay down the debt. You have to choose an interest rate that is reasonable so explain how you choose the parameters used in your calculations. 3. Suppose the annual debt rate is increasing at a set annual rate. Use the Compound Interest Calculator for Interest Paid n Times per Year from the gr financial management spreadsheet to calculate the size of the debt in the future. Select a number of years and use a few different annual rates to compare differences in the amount of deficit spending. Use the values in the charts provided to start your calculations. Explain how the much difference the different rates you used make on the rate of growth in the deficit. 4. Can you explain the difference between On-Budget and Off Budget effects on the Federal Budget? Read the Strange Numbers section of Unit F and compare this information to the budget data from the spreadsheet provided for this assignment. Is the deficit really $17 trillion or is it more because of the off budget borrowing described in the book. Is this an issue that is a part of the general discussion when Social Security and Medicare spending is the topic?