The current cover of The Economist is awfully on-point, with a giant ball and chain attached to a crawling baby. It is, of course, the debt bill faced by the developed world, which is the biggest in history.
The entire associated article is empirical, direct, and highly worth reading.
via The Big Bill: Debt and Developed Countries By Paul Kedrosky · Saturday, June 13, 2009 as quoting from The Economist print edition via Government debt: The big sweat | The Economist.
The cover says it all
And for those who like data, the chart is pretty graphic as well!
Read the full article in The Economist and then call your Senators and Congressmen and implore them to find a way to put the brakes on with the spending spree.