Thanks to Steve B. for sending this through, having heard about our go round at our friend Charles G's facebook site.

As always, the photo takes you to the story.

As an aside, clicking on the authors name will take you to a fairly complete list of Jefferson County issues as reported by Mr. Wright.

Receiver seeks control of $257 million in Jefferson County sewer cash and investments

By Barnett Wright -- The Birmingham News 

The court-appointed receiver who oversees Jefferson County's sewer system has asked the county for control over the system's $257 million in cash and investments in case the financially troubled county files bankruptcy.

The move would expand the authority of John S. Young, who is pushing for double-digit increases in rates to pay sewer system creditors who are owed $3.2 billion. Currently, Jeff Hager, the county's chief financial officer, controls the flow of the money.

"I am taking signature authority over the revenue funds and the bond funds," Young said. "It makes sure that we keep those funds segregated and allow me to keep using the bond funds for the capital programs. It probably protects the funds and puts the funds in a better position if the county files bankruptcy."

Meanwhile, several Jefferson County commissioners say the county is "moving closer" to bankruptcy as a result of its general fund cash crunch and other fiscal woes.

County officials have projected Alabama's most populous county will run out of general fund money during the first week in August, if replacement revenue is not generated.

The Guidotti-Greenspan Rule

Named for Pablo Guidotti, former deputy minister of finance for Argentina (that bastion of resposibility in national financing), and Alan Greenspan, increasingly discredited former chairman of the Federal Reserve Board of the United States (that other bastion of responsibility in national financing)

States that a countries financial reserves should equal short-term external debt (one-year or less maturity), implying a ratio of reserves-to-short term debt of 1.

The rationale here, is that countries should have enough reserves to resist a massive withdrawal of short term foreign capital.

The U.S. holds gold, oil, and foreign currencies in reserve.

The U.S. has 8,133.5 metric tonnes of gold (supposedly, ain't nobody counted it in generations).

It is the world's largest holder (supposedly, ..... ).

That's 16,267,000 pounds (at the risk of redundancy ....... ).

At about $1,100 per oz. or $17,600 per pound, it's worth just under $300 billion (you know ..... ).

The U.S. strategic petroleum reserve shows a current total position of 725 million barrels of oil.

At about $80 per barrel, that's roughly $58 billion.

And according to the IMF, the U.S. has $136 billion in foreign currency reserves.

So altogether... that's around $500 billion of reserves.

Now, consider this .............

Within the next 12 months, the U.S. Treasury will have to refinance $2 trillion in short-term debt.

That's not counting any additional deficit spending, maybe another $1.5 trillion ..... ish.

Add it up and you get $3.5 trillion ..... or so, a trillion here a trillion there, pretty soon you're talking about real money.

That would be about 30% of our entire GDP.

Where do you think that money is gonna come from?

They're gonna print it.

Or snatch your IRA.

If not both.

The above was taken almost in it's entirety (with the exception of the bitter and/or sarcastic comments usually written with type just about this big) from a Porter Stansbury article that was all over the place most of this past fall.

It appears here, here, here  and there, but originated here  (somewhere).