Fun facts about the U.S. national debt

Quick, how many zeroes are in a trillion? Answer –– 12.

You don’t often have to think much about the number 1 trillion, do you? If you’re an astronomer calculating the number of stars in the universe, then you’re highly familiar with this gargantuan figure. Otherwise, you don’t often have to consider what a trillion really means.

Negotiations between President Obama and congressional leaders on whether and how to raise the U.S. debt ceiling –– which as I write stands at $14.29 trillion –– are forcing average Americans to think about a trillion –– multiplied by 14 and change.

By my calculations,14.29 trillion dollar bills laid end to end would wrap around the 25,000-mile-long Equator 53.8 times.

One trillion equals 1,000 billion. That is, the U.S. government –– the world’s largest debtor –– owes a little more than $14,000 billion. Factoring in every man, woman and child, Americans’ per-capita share of that debt is about $46,600, according to the CIA’s World Fact Book.

The trouble is that these figures are virtually meaningless without context. How, for example, does our national debt compare to our gross domestic product –– the sum total of a country’s economic output in a given year?

If we were able to produce, say, $30 trillion in economic activity in a year –– double our national debt –– then, hey, no problem. Even $20 trillion would work. But the U.S. isn’t producing anywhere near these figures. According to the CIA, the U.S.’s GDP now stands at about $14.5 trillion. Therefore, our public debt equals 98.5 percent of GDP, which is on top of the $15 trillion in mortgage, student loan and credit card debt that we’ve collectively racked up.

That’s not good. And when you consider that 65 percent of our GDP comes from consumer spending –– rather than manufacturing –– the picture appears even bleaker.

Of course, you have to compare the U.S. with other nations to truly understand our economic position on the world stage. The European Union –– comprising 27 nations –– has accumulated almost as much public debt as the U.S. –– $13.72 trillion, according to the CIA. The thing is, the E.U. has a higher GDP, at a little more than $16 trillion. So the E.U.’s public debt equals only 85.75 percent of its GDP.