Hardly a day goes by that an economist doesn't condemn the nation's fiscal situation. But how bad is it, really?

Well, if the government was your typical Japanese household, the bills wouldn't get paid, the debt would be up to the homeowner's eyeballs, and poor dog Spot would have high-tailed it to the neighbor's house years ago.

Take the fictitious Koizumi family, for example. As the average Japanese household did in 2003, it earns 6.29 million yen annually, a figure equivalent to the 47.79 trillion yen the government expects to amass in revenues from tax and non-tax sources in fiscal 2005.

The mother and father of our imaginary family, let's call them Hanako and Junichi, make a combined 524,542 yen a month, including semiannual bonuses.

But the Koizumis are required to fork over 202,409 yen each month to pay off their recklessly acquired mortgage, corresponding to the 18.4 trillion yen the government pays to service its debts in fiscal 2005.

That leaves the Koizumis with 322,133 yen to survive on each month.

But rather than resort to a humble life, our family prefers to live well beyond its means, spending 518,945 yen a month.

In government terms, that translates to 47.3 trillion yen in general expenditures, or spending on policy-oriented programs for the fiscal year.

Alas, the Koizumis are impulsive spenders, prone to extravagant shopping sprees on such items as fur coats, diamonds and matching kilts.

But the family's expenditures don't stop there. Junichi's parents are not aging gracefully, and require 176,581 yen per month for upkeep.

That's equivalent to the portion of tax revenues the central government will grant to local governments in fiscal 2005, or roughly 16.1 trillion yen.

To cover its immoderate spending habits, the family borrows 377,441 yen a month, corresponding to the issuance of 34.4 trillion yen in new government bonds.

The family manages to survive by repeatedly refinancing the loans, but the outstanding bills still total 70.9 million yen, which in state budget terms represents 538 trillion yen in outstanding government bonds.

On the bright side, Junichi's salary has increased a little and the family has managed to rein in its spending a tad.

Yet it has been unsuccessful in its attempts to kick its addiction to living on borrowed money, making it highly likely the loan balance will continue to grow.

Fortunately for the nation, there are always people out there willing to lend it money due to its strong credit standing. This comes from a belief that a country as wealthy as Japan is at little risk of defaulting.

But things will not nearly be as rosy for the Koizumis this year. A bank official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said, ``The next time Mr. Koizumi comes in here looking for a new loan, we're prepared to tell him, `Sir, you won't be getting another yen from us because you are bankrupt, plain and simple. Unless you radically alter your lifestyle, you'll never dig yourself out of the hole you're in.''(IHT/Asahi: December 25,2004)