Yes, the stock market is going rollercoaster and many people who never read the Wall Street Journal are now economic experts, sounding the panic bell.
The president and fed chair are working on a quick fix to stave off a recession, but is our economy really in trouble or is this just a severe case of political hypochondria?
Many of the presidential candidates see the economy as an important campaign issue. For years, we hear about our economy being the worst since the Hoover administration. Are these politicians qualified to make such statements?
Just yesterday during a House Budget Committee hearing, Democrat congresswoman Marcy Kaptur repeatedly confused the backgrounds of Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson’s.
But she’s on a committee tasked with repairing our ailing economy. That must boost Wall Street’s confidence, right?
Presidential candidates, while just candidates, have the power to influence. Remember when Barack Obama last August said he’d send more American soldiers into Pakistan to catch terrorists? Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf freaked, and calming clarifications by our State Department had to be issued.
Obama is not the president, but his words resonated worldwide. Multiply that word power by all of our presidential candidates bashing the economy, and you have the makings of a be-careful-what-you-ask-for scenario.
I still believe the majority of Americans are feeling the pinch because of the rise in oil prices. The OPEC nations have pulled back production just to spike prices, and instead of truly seeking to become “energy independent” (that means drilling for our own oil), our candidates are going to dance around the issue offering up alternatives like pricey (and potentially dangerous) light bulbs, and all things wonderful and green.
Of course, many Americans believe that once their choice of president gets elected, all of our economic troubles will go away. That is, after a repair period that will include the repeated blaming of our woes on George W. Bush.
The economy should be allowed to run its course. The United States is still the place where everyone wants to set up shop, and that would not be the case if our economy were in the tank. But we must be very careful when allowing the Capitol Hill clueless to monkey around with our paychecks.
Our money reads “In God we trust.” The day it says, “In politicians we trust”, we’ll really be in trouble.
