Reflection: The Fiscal Ship

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Reflection: The Fiscal Ship
The Fiscal Ship is a game that communicates policy intricacies by requiring players to choose governing goals and select policies that put development objectives on a sustainable course. For instance, having selected the three governing goals of protecting the elderly, strengthening social security, and fighting climate change, I was asked to select policies that aligned with the three aims. Some of the policy solutions I chose in the first round of the game include boosting low-wage workers’ Social Security, boosting Social Security benefits for the very old, and instituting Medicare for All. Those I selected in the second round of the game include increasing gas tax, extending renewable energy tax benefits, increasing Social Security payroll tax, imposing a wealth tax, increasing the estate tax, and raising taxes on cigarettes and vaping products.
I learnt the federal budget process, particularly the intricate process of ensuring economic sustainability while prioritizing different priority policies. The game presented complex issues in a creative and engaging manner so that by the time I had managed to achieve the selected goals, I had already attained a strong grasp of the complex relationship between policymaking and national debt. I was surprised to learn that every policy I selected had a significant impact on the national debt where certain policies (while furthering the overall governing goal) had a negative impact on the national debt, whereas others improved the country's fiscal position. The game succeeded in illustrating the challenges policymakers encounter in delivering overarching goals while also decreasing national debt.
Meeting development agendas is not a straightforward task since it entails implementing policies that are contrary to the overall goal of reducing the national debt. It is a difficult process that requires many trade-offs in terms of selected policies. I, therefore, found the game very helpful in highlighting the policymaking process in an exhaustive and hands-on manner. The list of policies was extensive and current: the game provided a brief explanation of every policy together with arguments for and against the same. Most members of the public are already familiar with a majority of listed policies but providing reasons for and against selecting the policy allows the player to make a meaningful attempt at implementing a winning strategy.
The game accurately illustrated the problem of rising federal debt as expressed by the readings by William Gale and David Wessel. Wessel’s article underlines the precarious position America’s federal deficit is situated in: extraordinarily low interest rates have enable the U.S. to take on more debt that it has ever incurred since World War II (Wessel). As a consequence, the federal budget is on an unsustainable course and experts fear the country’s large debt may limit the country’s ability to recover from the economic slump caused by the pandemic or even shoulder future economic crashes. On the other hand, Gale’s article illustrates the additional economic challenge of a rising federal debt brought about by increasing healthcare costs and an expanding agi...