If the rules of business applied to government, the costs of past promises become explicit and vast. USA Today reports on the unfunded liabilities of governments--the extent to which anticipated tax revenues are outstripped by various promises made.

The bottom line, the paper said, is that "Taxpayers are now on the hook for a record $59.1 trillion in liabilities, a 2.3% increase from 2006. That amount is equal to $516,348 for every U.S. household. By comparison, U.S. households owe an average of $112,043 for mortgages, car loans, credit cards and all other debt combined."

The single largest obligation ($255, 280 per household) is from one health care program, Medicare. But states are also part of the problem, burdening us with $17,537 per household for debt of various sorts, and another $13,114 for retirement benefits for state and local employees.