I am thrilled that this administration is trying to reduce the federal deficit, but I hope it does not fool itself. We will pay for eight years of mismanagement, by a reduction in our standard of living and the services government can provide. Though, if the new administration says otherwise, it is understandable, as public perception influences the public”s spending habits. One of the worst inhibitors to economic recovery is the loosening of credit and the pocketbooks of the public. Personally, I would like to see a middle ground. The public needs to save more to create investment capital the proper way, and spend more in a more responsible manner, not through credit cards.
We could reap enormous savings by curbing the cost of health care, for example HMOs, and rethinking the disastrous “War on Drugs,” which costs taxpayers about 6 billion a year. Other industrialized nations do not have this “giant gorilla” on their backs. But we make drugs to gangs, similar to what prohibition did for the Mafia, a giant adrenaline injection over a protracted period of time. Both were very poorly thought out laws for good reasons, with the public good in mind, but created uncontrolled and untaxed industries, illegal meaning they were controlled by illegal groups, unscrupulously controlling the market by any means necessary. And the costs in criminal activity by addicts to obtain their drugs is only part of the cost, as housing in prisons and rehabilitation programs is phenomenal.
Thomas Friedman wrote a great article in the New York Times, on the the 21st or 22nd of February, on spending our bail-out money on innovative start-ups instead of dinosaurs, worth thinking about, huh? Sure, we need GM and Chrysler to keep their employees working, but we need fresh ideas and creativity in their companies. Look no further than Ford to find a company with a fresh outlook and future.
Dave Gebhard
Lakeport
