Another picture of a hero.

WE'RE WINNING THE WAR, BUT WE'RE LOSING OUR ECONOMY.
What could possibly be done
By Steve Young

Here’s the facts on Hawaii: Bankruptcies are at an all time high, Japanese tourism has slumped to a whopping 40%,, Waikiki has the potential of turning into a ghost town….and I think I may be losing my mind at my next board meeting.

Here’s the facts on America: The stock market is fumbling, 401k’s are floundering, corporations are lying, and businessmen are crying.

Who would have thought that America, “The Great,” would ever be in this position? Our economy is drunk and won’t get off the wagon. Now I don’t want to talk about the tech bubble, or the cost of gas, or who’s administration is to blame. That’s history. Right now our country is at war and it's costing us billions and our economy has to pay for this... Again, I'm not going to play the blame game. I want results.

We need to get back to where we were in the early 90’s. Ton’s of jobs, real profits, and a robust economy. What we need is a “Shock and Awe” plan to revive this faltering economy. Simple economics state that economic growth is a direct reflection of the speed in which monetary funds are circulated. Simple? Sounds good…and it makes sense. So why doesn’t our government follow simple rules you’ve learned in college:

AIRLINE BAILOUT LOANS:
DON’T DO IT! All right, I understand that airlines are hurting. September 11th just crushed an industry that was already committing mass suicide. But giving out loans to these businesses is not the right direction. It does nothing to help circulate money.

The solution: Instead of giving an airline a two billion dollar loan, why not just buy two billion dollars worth of tickets? The airlines will keep flying. Tourist will keep traveling. Distribute them by lottery to federal employees, or maybe military wives.

DRAMATICALLY INCREASE FUNDING TO THE MWR:
For those of you who don’t know what the MWR is: it's the military’s Moral Welfare and Recreation department. They are directly responsible for keeping our brave soldiers happy. Seeing what they go through in the war, I believe they are entitled to more of my tax dollars.

The solution: Increasing MWR funding should translate into giving away tickets to concerts, games, movies, amusements parks, vacations, etc..etc…that would be available to soldiers through either lottery or incentives..etc…etc… MWR pays for the ticket, the soldiers have fun enjoying more activities here in America. Money is circulated, hey we’re all happy.

President Bush, the most unlikely right man for the job.

INCREASE GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS
The federal government should increase small businesses contracts and make the bidding process very efficient. Small contracts would do just fine…large ones wouldn’t hurt.

CAPITAL GAINS AND LUXURY TAX:
Eliminate these completely and the stock market will charge back. There is no reason why you should tax anyone just because they can afford to buy something expensive. There’s no reason.

LOWER THE FEDERAL GAS TAX:
This tax is abused by the government and is mostly used to fill government budget gaps. Lowering this tax will ultimately lower the price of gas, which would inspire people to travel more…which would circulate more money in different parts of the country.

DRAMATICALLY DECREASE THE AMOUNT OF FOREIGN AID.
We really need to help ourselves before we help others. I don’t mind helping someone out, but in times like this, it’s a good business decision to become a little selfish.

CUT TAXES FOR EVERYONE, INCLUDING THE RICH:
I really would enjoy a flat tax here. Lower taxes equal more ciruclated money, which equals a robust economy and more jobs.

Again, something needs to be done. Personally, I hate relying on the government for anything other than national security. They're extremely slow moving. It's not their fault. Like any large organization, things just move fairly slow. But our future is in their hands, not just President Bush's. This war will soon be over, now is probably a good time for American to start worrying what we'll do to pay for this.

Any comments, feel free to email me at stevenhyoung@canoegirl.com