Many of the major nations are undergoing painful economic choices and decisions. As I write these words, a demonstration of 250,000 peacefully marched in London, except for a minority of 500 who became aggressive, throwing ammonia-filled light bulbs at police, smashing windows and scrawling graffiti on bank and corporate buildings. France has had a series of strikes and demonstrations with cars burned with Molotov cocktails or overturned. Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Greece, Italy---you name it---all are fighting fiscal chaos. Wisconsin and Ohio have witnessed, for the most part, peaceful but noisy demonstrations against attempts to cut services or to limit the public unions from collective bargaining, and these conflicts illustrate the malaise and pain of today.
Most of the winter of discontent centers around attempts to get a handle on fiscal expenses and deficits, which have necessitated cutting large chunks of public service, education , medical services and other matters dear to the public heart. Large unemployment and slowed economies complete the dismal picture of countries in economic distress. It would appear from the international scene that drastic fiscal cuts in an effort to stem the deficit are not always successful. In the short term, such cuts may appear to have saved money, but, in the long view, revenues eventually suffer and the economy stalls. Whatever choice you make, it is bound to be painful.
My inclination is we still have to emphasize job creation, and that means priming the governmental pump to create jobs or making incentives to stimulate business. It is pure astigmatism to cut education when we are facing an international market where emerging nations are closing the educational gap or, in some cases, have passed us. It is totally self-defeating to cut that area where we need to train a better work force and to preserve the flow of new ideas for which America has been famed.
We also still have to face the major task of dealing with entitlements, those areas which comprise the major part of governmental expenditure: reforming the income tax code, controlling medical costs and developing a workable health plan, and streamlining social security---the real guts of our economy. Moreover, I hate to say it, it may well mean in the future raising taxes, even after we clean up the income tax code. Without jobs and without training for the future, we are going to slip into mediocrity. Without dealing with the major areas of expenditures, we are going to continue increasing the deficit and further mortgaging future generations. But the first thing we have to do is get people working. It is amazing what that can do for morale and a positive “can-do” attitude.
Yes, it is Hobson’s choice: whatever we do will hurt, for sure. But it has to be done.
I know what you're suggesting be done to me but please don't hurt me.
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