[dns_snek]

> I will one day become infirm and unable to earn money, that does not mean I'm currently living beyond my means.

That is not the same thing because it's real productivity, labor is the only thing in the world that has any real value. You're exchanging your own labor for other people's labor. The US is exchanging something that has no inherent value (USD) for other people's labor.

If I take on all the debt that I can, max out my credit cards, mortgage my house, and spend everything I have on luxuries, am I living beyond my means, or am I living within my means as evidenced by the fact that I'm actually doing it?

[starspangled]

> That is not the same thing because it's real productivity, labor is the only thing in the world that has any real value.

Note that I'm strictly discussing this topic using words in the way you'd find them defined in a reputable dictionary or a high school economics book.