is this the start of the fall into 800s....., page-23

Paying down debt is not so difficult in this paper world. This one has been doing the rounds for a while now, apologies if you've already seen it:

“It is the month of August, on the shores of the Black Sea . It is raining, and the little town looks totally deserted. It is tough times, everybody is in debt, and everybody lives on credit.

”Suddenly, a rich tourist comes to town.

”He enters the only hotel, lays a 100-euro note on the reception counter, and goes to inspect the rooms upstairs in order to pick one.

”The hotel proprietor takes the 100-euro note and runs to pay his debt to the butcher.

”The butcher takes the 100-euro note and runs to pay what he owes the pig farmer.

”The pig farmer takes the 100-euro note and runs to pay his debt to his supplier of feed and fuel.

”The supplier of feed and fuel takes the 100-euro note and runs to pay his debt to the town’s prostitute that, in these hard times, proffered her ’services’ on credit.

”The prostitute take the 100-euro note and runs to the hotel to pay for the rooms she rented when she brought her clients there.

”The hotel proprietor then lays the 100-euro note back on the counter so that the rich tourist will not suspect anything.

”At that moment, the rich tourist comes down after inspecting the rooms, takes the 100-euro note off the desk, tucks it back into his wallet, and explains that he did not like any of the rooms. He then leaves town.

”No one earned a penny. However, the whole town is now without debt and looks to the future with great optimism.

”And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how the United States Government is doing business.”