If you've ever wanted to control where the tax dollars go, here is a great new game from American Public Media that you simply must play. It's called Budget Hero, and you can experience a glimpse of what it must be like to manage the budget of the United States. Choose from numerous tax cuts, increases and various policy changes and see how it impacts this country's financial picture in the next 10 years. Do you have what it takes to balance the budget and actually get what you want done? Give it a shot!
Update: Budget Hero is now updated to reflect the cost of the financial industry bailout authorized by Congress. As of December 31st, 2008, the cost to U.S. taxpayers, as estimated by the Congressional Budget Office, was $50 Billion. The U.S. Treasury so far has purchased $191 Billion worth of stock in troubled financial institutions. The current value of that stock is $141 Billion. Budget Hero treats the $50 Billion loss as a miscellaneous expense.
