I think the author doesn't appreciate that the debt is being repaid, perhaps because that happens in a very un- conventional manner, different from ways most people think debt is repaid.
#1 we are doing gargantuan "stimulus" transfers of money. This money will serve 1 thing only: The US will become a net exporter (and to some degree, it always was) of inflation. All the world economies that can get away doing so will do so.
Since all debt that matters is denominated in USD, then that debt is effectively being repaid thru the loss of purchasing power of every single dollar holder.
At some point it may be true that debtholders may experience a debt "shock". This brings me to repayment #2
IF any issuer of debt, like a bank, gets in trouble, like in 2008 or March 2020, they are bailed out. Sometimes directly (TARP) sometimes indirectly (CARES).
So due to the bailout, a huge amount of debt is transferred to the federal balance sheet. Its true that did not liquidate the private debt - govt debt still needs to be repaid. But that can happen via #1, or via taxation. So the circle is closed and the debt is repaid. Note that taxation can involve individuals not yet born, too.
So while I agree that this is zombie (bad) debt, i don't agree that it won't be repaid. Its just that the time horizon for repayment is so long, and hard to observe, that it may lead to the conclusion that the debt is not being repaid.
#1 we are doing gargantuan "stimulus" transfers of money. This money will serve 1 thing only: The US will become a net exporter (and to some degree, it always was) of inflation. All the world economies that can get away doing so will do so. Since all debt that matters is denominated in USD, then that debt is effectively being repaid thru the loss of purchasing power of every single dollar holder.
At some point it may be true that debtholders may experience a debt "shock". This brings me to repayment #2
IF any issuer of debt, like a bank, gets in trouble, like in 2008 or March 2020, they are bailed out. Sometimes directly (TARP) sometimes indirectly (CARES).
So due to the bailout, a huge amount of debt is transferred to the federal balance sheet. Its true that did not liquidate the private debt - govt debt still needs to be repaid. But that can happen via #1, or via taxation. So the circle is closed and the debt is repaid. Note that taxation can involve individuals not yet born, too.
So while I agree that this is zombie (bad) debt, i don't agree that it won't be repaid. Its just that the time horizon for repayment is so long, and hard to observe, that it may lead to the conclusion that the debt is not being repaid.