I.O.U.S.A.

The United States is front and centre on the world stage today due to the incredible level of debt the country has amassed – a debt that continues to spiral out of control. With a dying economy, massive rates of unemployment, and an ever-tightening credit market, the U.S. has a President with a mandate to fix the problems, and fix them fast. To do this, he is getting the country into even more debt – by borrowing from foreign neighbours and increasing the deficit to levels that it will take centuries to reduce.

Many Americas are blissfully unaware of the trouble their country is in, and that is the whole point of this film. The documentary looks at debt from a historical standpoint, and asks the hard, penetrating question as to whether it is wise to alleviate a country’s economic woes by incurring even more of the same,

The film examines several alternative ways that the United States could revitalize its economy and its position on the world stage – ways that do not involve the incurring of massive amounts of debt. But the director leaves it to the viewer to evaluate these options and decide for himself which one is best.

Entitlement programs, such as Social Security, Veterans benefits, Medicare and Welfare are also examined in depth and the question is asked whether the U.S. can afford these types of programs any longer.

I liked this film mainly because didn’t preach to me and it didn’t lay out the director’s agenda is being the only right road to travel. It merely presented the facts, several alternatives, and then left it up to the viewer to form their own opinion. And, at least to me, that’s exactly what a documentary film is supposed to do.