Once again, today we find ourselves with no single overarching story. But there are a couple of quick hits from the financial news worth noting. Let’s start with the headlines—literally.

I’ve spent the past couple of posts painting a picture of how dire the situation is with the deficit and the debt—and it really is. But now we can turn to the real questions: is this a solvable problem or not? If so, what would it take? Indeed, there are a couple of ways the problem can be solved. Some are painless and others not so much. Let’s start with the easy ones.

I last looked at whether the housing market might be rolling over back in March. At that time, I concluded that the industry was indeed past its peak. I also determined that we were still not close to the end of the cycle. With all of the weak data we have seen from this sector recently, I thought it was a good time to take another look.

Last week was a busy one for economic news, with wide-ranging reports including retail sales, industrial production, and manufacturing. We also got testimony before Congress from Fed Chair Jerome Powell, which shed some light on how the Fed is likely to react to rising inflation. This week, we will also cover a lot of data, starting with housing.

In recent posts, we have looked at the deficit over the next 10 years, according to the nonprofit Congressional Budget Office (CBO), and the debt over that same period. Now, we are ready to take a look at what that problem might mean for us as a country. It is certainly a problem, but is it solvable? And if so, what would it take to solve it?

Last week, we talked about the deficit, including how it is at unsustainable levels and how it is expected to get worse (much worse) over the next several years. What we left open was when and how the deficit actually turns into trouble.

We are nearing the end of the regular semiannual testimony by the chair of the Fed, Jerome Powell, in front of Congress. Yesterday, he spoke to the Senate and today he is speaking to the House. As the most influential economic official in the world, what Powell says carries real weight.

The other day I got an excellent question from a reader (below), which really cuts to the core of what I am trying to do here. I was going to respond to her directly, but then I decided it was such a good question that it deserved a post of its own.

Last week’s data was primarily about prices, although we closed with a look at consumer confidence. The week ahead will be a busy one for economic news, with wide-ranging reports. We’ll also get testimony before Congress from Fed Chair Jerome Powell, which should shed some light on how the Fed is likely to react to rising inflation.

One of the important concerns we face today is the deficit. Although it has been overshadowed recently by the headlines on trade, it is actually a potentially bigger problem and is definitely a more certain one. As such, we need to take a look at exactly what the problem is, what it could mean to our investments, and perhaps most important, whether the problem is solvable—or not.