The fact that some thoughts are unpleasant does not make them less true.

It is very unpleasant to think about the mess our country is in.  And our concern increases when we evaluate the motley collection of so-called leaders whose task is to undo the mess.  In large part, they made the mess.

Unpleasant or not, facing reality is the best approach. There are two unusual politicians, both outside the mainstream, whose thoughts on our situation are worth considering.

Here is Ron Paul from a CNBC interview last Friday:

“I think we have passed that point of no return where we can actually get our house in order.  I believe there is too much bipartisanship on the spending. Nobody is talking about cutting any spending.”  [While others are talking about the need for bi-partisan agreement, contrarian Paul notes that the parties agree on far too much.  In reality, both support massive, growing government.]

“Republicans and Democrats,” he continued, “ pretend they’re fighting up there, but they really aren’t. They’re arguing over power, spin, and who looks good, and who looks bad, but they’re all trying to preserve this system where they can spend what they want, take care of their friends, and let the Fed print money when they need it.”

Paul expects a temporary fix, which, like all the ‘fixes’ in Greece, will be touted as a solution when it is not a solution at all.

Paul continues, “There’s no admission that they have a crisis. They have no admission that the country is bankrupt. There’s no admission that our government is spending way too much and it’s way beyond our means and there’s not a single bit of effort to cut anything,” the congressman continued.  “Even when they talk about slashing the budget and all these cuts, they’re only talking about tinkering along the edges of proposed automatic increases.”

“They are so they so far removed from admitting the seriousness of this crisis and if they don’t admit it, they can’t solve the problem. They’re like a bunch of drug addicts that just want another fix. That’s what they are looking for.”

In another recent interview, Paul said,  “I would raise the debt ceiling on one condition and that would be a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution.  Barring that, people in Congress, those who I’ve met up here, they don’t deserve to manage any more money. They’re doing a bad job managing the money they have. We should not send them any more money.  They’re not to be trusted with money.“

Wayne Allen Root, a Libertarian Republican from Nevada, named the reasons that he believes our country faces the most serious economic crisis in our history.  The problems he names are real.  His article begins this way:

Everywhere from FoxNews.com to CNBC.com, I suddenly see commentators warning  of pending doom, economic collapse, and a new Great Depression. Welcome to my  club. Perhaps America’s politicians and economists should have paid  attention to an entrepreneur and small businessman that has been warning of  economic collapse and a new Great Depression publicly for over two  years.

More importantly, none of the current commentaries mention the “why’s” of  this slow motion economic collapse…beyond the obvious — mountains of deficit  and debt. None of them mention the dysfunctional structure of the current U.S.  economy and the massive changes in the work ethic and mindset of the average  American.

I am a successful small businessman and a patriot who loves America and  always sees its greatness. I am also an optimistic, positive thinker who always  sees the glass half full.

But not this time.

This time we are in such deep trouble, the only solution is a radical  restructuring of the politicians, the economy, and the way we view personal  responsibility versus government handouts. If those changes don’t come then we  are facing a long decline and the eventual end of America.

This time the results are going to be dramatically worse than 1929. This time  we are facing The Greatest Depression ever.

Why? Because The Great Depression had NONE of the structural, economic, and  social problems, nor the massive obligations we are now facing.

In 1929 America was not $16 trillion in debt, plus facing over  $100 trillion in unfunded liabilities.  That’s over $360,000 in debt per citizen.

In 1929, most of our states were not bankrupt, insolvent and dependent on  federal government handouts to survive….             …..Read the rest of Root’s analysis here.