Common Sense Economic Discussion Is Needed

It seems that everywhere I turn, I hear another theory as to what the cause of our present economic situation is, and whose fault it is. Everyone seems to find someone to blame, from the President, to his advisers, to the banks, to our federal elected officials, to our local officials, to joblessness, to outsourcing, or to a multitude of other factors. However, while everyone seems to find it simple to blame something or someone, I rarely hear a viable solution or alternative.

I feel that there is little doubt that much, if not all of our political system and the way our governments are run, is highly dysfunctional. This dysfunctional behavior appears to be non-selective when it comes to the level of government, or to the elected official. It is certainly a rarity when any government agency or body gets anything productive accomplished.

Of course, it is easy to blame President Obama, because he is the visible leader. He has not only been blamed for things he's done, but also for things done by his predecessors, or by others. His opponents are always quick to criticize, and obviously in these economic times, it is easy to blame, but what is the solution.

There are many people who are critical of the government bailouts, but what might have occurred had their been none. What would have happened if some of these "too big to fail" institutions actually failed? Obama supporters paint one picture, and opponents paint a far different one.

President Obama points to a slowing of job loss as evidence that his plan is working, but what would have happened otherwise? We can speculate, but we really do not know.

I have yet to see anyone from either side of the political spectrum really develop a plan to address both the economy and the joblessness issues. Obviously, they are interrelated. Wouldn't it make sense to encourage investment in industries that address things that have heavily contributed to this economic mess, and will continue to if not addressed? Most would agree that the high cost of energy, and our lack of energy independence are major contributors to these economic times. Why not give incentives to businesses to hire and expand in industries that will address the energy issue, such as solar, wind, natural gas, domestic energy exploration, etc.? That would address joblessness, the economy and the future. Of course, that would probably make too much sense, so we can't expect our political leaders to follow that course of action.

When will political leaders stop playing political games, and actually address issues? Only, when the public demands it!