I think everybody pretty much agrees that all this discretionary budget maneuvering is just a side show. The real deficit problem is entitlements. Entitlements, (Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid), consumed 43% of the 2010 Federal budget. On the other hand, Social Security and Social Insurance is financed, at least in part, by the future recipients. They had withheld from their paychecks 40% of the 2010 Federal tax receipts. In fact, Money paid into the system for Social Security/Social Insurance was almost as much (95%) as that paid in as individual income taxes.

Total Federal expenditures exceeded receipts by $1294 billion, but the deficits due to "Social" programs comprise less than 41% of the total deficit, a huge shortfall to be sure, but one in line with the budget as a whole; the "Social deficit" is about the same percentagewise as the total deficit. There is a budget deficit not because of "entitlements", but because of everything. The Social programs, to a great extent, pay for themselves.

Contrast this with Defense, which spends as much (about 20% of the budget) as either Social Security or Medicare/Medicaid, but contributes absolutely nothing to income. In fact, eliminating Defense altogether would save enough money to cover the Social deficit and still leave $160 billion left over, enough to match both Russia and China's combined military expenditures in 2009.

Of course, no one is actually suggesting that the Defense Department be liquidated. That would be irresponsible, but no one is suggesting that the poor, children, the aged and the sick be left to their own devices either, or are they? After all, what are governments for, anyway?

The Republicans are right about one thing; one which the Democrats have ignored for too long. We have a cash problem, and we're all going to have to bite the bullet to fix it. After we cut back on the pork, mismanagement, waste and fraud, (which isn't really all that much), we are all going to have to tighten our belts; not just those who benefit from government programs, (all of us), but those who pay for them (all of us). But these problems are fixable, they can be corrected with some discomfort, but no catastrophe, for everyone involved. Nothing should be off the table, not social programs, not the military, not tax increases. Otherwise, any attempt at "reform" will be just an auction for lifeboat seats, and we all know who will be able to afford them.