“The Global Public Debt Clock was developed using data and forecasts from the Economist Intelligence Unit database. It is, of course, inspired by the National Debt Clock, a rolling measure of the US public debt that physically resides in midtown Manhattan. This clock was originally sponsored by a real estate developer, Seymour Durst, who wanted to make people aware of the rising public debt, which at the time was less than $3 trillion. The Global Public Debt Clock includes historical data on sovereign debt back to 1999 and forecasts through 2011. Data can be parsed to view country comparisons, including figures on public debt per capita, debt as a percent of GDP, and yearly rate of change. Forecasts change frequently, of course, and updated data will be fed into the clock soon.”