This put a smile on my face today. CNN reports that according to the latest statement from the U.S. Treasury, the government had an operating cash balance Wednesday of $73.8 billion. This puts it in second place to Apple Computer’s healthy stash of $76.2 billion in cash and marketable securities.
The article continues to explain why Apple has been so successful lately, and doesn’t mention the current tussle in Washington over the debt ceiling, which has delayed budget funding that would probably put Uncle Sam back on top. Even if Apple seems to be able to “print money” with its wildly popular iPhones and iPads, it’s still far easier to ask the Fed to just type in a few zeroes when necessity demands it. But at least for a moment, credit is given to the “old school” way of making money: creating value for consumers.
This unusual event is ironically as things should always be. One entity creates so much value for people that they willingly stand in line before the doors open to hand over wads of cash. Combined with sound financial practices, you can see why Apple would have so much in the bank. Compare that to the government, which some would claim does “a lot of public good” – yet the only lines of people you see eager to pay the government form at the last possible hour on April 15 – and those are only to avoid the threat of having the IRS show up at the door with handcuffs…
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Sounds like Michael Moore’s “National Resource”
The Treasury just burned $15B overnight, now down to under $60B.
As it goes soon everyone will have more money than the US Government.
This is why we need a wealth tax. It’s a travesty to have a company that gives consumers what they want hoarding cash while a government dedicated to giving the people (and mother Earth) what it needs goes penniless. A 100% wealth tax will fix that in a jiffy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oShTJ90fC34
Right, it’s a travesty that “we” “let” them keep all that money and they just hoard it, sit on it, they don’t even use it to grow jobs!! How dare they!
I am humbled to have Mr. Kinsella on my side. He will be excited to know that the definition of embezzlement has been expanded to include folks who don’t pay their taxes – Property is Theft. Delicious!
HL, you are either a troll or very naïve.
I know it’s difficult to embed the proper tone when writing but HL’s post was quite the obvious use of sarcasm
I was being a troll.
“HL, you are either a troll or very naïve.”
No, Gosho, you are the one who is ńăívę. How many M-16s does Apple have? Probably only like 10-20, and no tanks or fighters. The US government will march right in and rifle-butt Steve Jobs in the head and take Apple’s golds. Most likely they will line up all the Apple employees and taser them 20 times each for their hubris as well.
“The US government will march right in and rifle-butt Steve Jobs in the head and take Apple’s golds.”
In other words, fire power is more valuable than gold ? Is that what you are saying ?
During the last great depression, FDR did just that, take everybody’s gold.
Does Apple run its business with a deficit?
That was yesterday. Tomorrow Congress will steal all that money.
Apple has nicer products than US government.
Apple’s swollen bank account is in a small part due to the fact that they do not pay dividends on stocks.
And i can’t think of 1 thing the government produces that I would want to buy.
The government produces nothing, it’s always private contractors that procure equipment, funding and weapons to the government.
Reality Check:
The “REAL” value of on-hand, liquid assets of the federal bilge-tank bank is a figure with so many minus zeroes that this thing we so revere as our protector is an even worse paper monster than those costumes worn in Chinese parades.
In REAL terms, a homeless bum more liquid value with a twenty dollar gold coin. That’s if we value honest assets. Not likely, though, with today’s scramble to make enough income to pay the unlawful, private banker IRS phony income tax, duly recognized as a thug with a gun and handcuffs in this amusing article.
Sad, people.
Sad.
Steve Jobs needs to learn basic Keynesian economics.
What Apple should do is staff up two new divisions. The first division can dig holes. The second division can fill them in. This will stimulate the economy; people will buy more iPhones and iPads. Apple will become even more profitable.
How come a smart guy like Steve Jobs has not yet figured this out?
Can’t we make Steve Jobs emperor or something, at least a cabinet memeber with a brain and some practical experience, or sell him the actual USA? I’d feel better. Then all we would have to worry about is keeping him healthy. Instead of trying to restore health to a whole nation.
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