Danette O'Neal, PhD

A lot is still undecided, but it’s pretty clear that income taxes will not rise and that Social Security will not be cut.
Straight to the point: What does the debt agreement painfully assembled by our political leaders actually mean to you? According to The Washington Post and The New York Times, the deal reached Sunday night would raise the nation’s borrowing authority in stages: $400 billion immediately, followed by $500 billion, this fall; Another increase of at least $1.2 trillion, enough to get into 2013.  The deal also requires a congressional vote on a balanced-budget amendment by the end of the year. There would be no increase in taxes for now.Democrats protected Social Security  & Medicare; The requirement that 50% of all spending cuts come out of defense. The largest affect will be on the civilian economy in big cities. It appears that the U.S. will not default on its debts, but reaction to the agreement by bond ratings services is expected to be “not enough debt reduction. Watch the video…