Citizens and government at fault for economic woes
Allyson Yund - May 1st, 2008Among the most talked about issues this campaign season, one rests at the forefront of most Americans’ minds: the failing economy. People want to know what each candidate is going to do to help them get or secure a job, pay off their debt, keep their homes and reduce their skyrocketing energy bills.
The officials currently in power have heard the cries and attempted to upright the economy by way of sending qualified individuals—read: sufficiently in debt persons—a $600 check to spend paid by money the government doesn’t really have.
While pundits, elected officials and otherwise interested parties speculate as to the best way to reverse this recession, they undoubtedly miss the most glaring contributor: the attitude Americans and American government have towards money. We spend without limits and consume wantonly as though our bellies are bottomless pits.
The wars in the Middle East topple the $500 trillion mark in total costs and an additional $66 billion approved by Congress to be spent this year, while the Arizona Board of Regents approved $26 million in budget cuts last week and public school employees across the nation are being fired as a result of reduced legislative funding.
National legislators earn six figures and shuttle between their home states and Washington D.C. while more than 2.2 million foreclosures have been filed across the nation.
And while we ask our legislators to bail us out, what we should be demanding is for them to realistically reevaluate our nation’s spending patterns and dictate what our priorities should be. Surely, the tax money being spent on missiles could be returned to families so they could make a house payment, buy groceries or buy a tank of gas.
The blame isn’t entirely to be placed on those we elect. The way we spend money as individuals and as a society is just as ludicrous.
The monetary cost of a cup of coffee from any chain—non-fat, no-whip, extra sugar please—is easily three to four dollars per cup, amounting to more than $1,000 annually for a cup-a-day habit. Naturally, this amounts to more if paid with money from loans, like educational loans or second mortgages.
Other luxury items like big cars that get horrible gas mileage driven in stop-and-go conditions are unnecessary when options like public transportation or vehicles with higher efficiency gas mileage are on the market for less dough. Still we purchase these with money from gigantic loans and credit cards, letting the interest build up over time.
Admittedly, there are still some problems with the economy and financial issues governed by politics.
We struggle to keep domestic jobs and instead outsource to people overseas who work more for less, forcing many into unemployment. Cuts in funding and profits do the same. Minimum wage is still not a living wage. Good quality healthcare is neither affordable nor accessible to a lot of people. Some mortgage companies and banks have irresponsibly lent to consumers. And these things have seriously contributed to the current situation.
But this is beyond solely a personal or political level – it’s both.
And the solution? It’s surprisingly simple.
Both individuals in society and the government need to take action by setting a budget and stick to it.
Tough decisions will have to be made on both accounts, and what people, the government and society think they need will have to be seriously evaluated.