@Dmj625 - There are all manner of things that a nation CAN do when it comes to its sovereign debt. None of these sorts of actions are "free", of course.

On the other hand the US is FAR better situated to operate without outside requirements than most nations. The adjustment would be ugly but we can do it. Many other nations, China included, cannot; they literally cannot FEED their people. The challenge is inside the line that denotes someone choosing to nuke everyone, either through a pattern of escalation that gets out of hand or by pure intentional act as a result of spite. Neither can be entirely discounted as possible.

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