I fall loosely in the camp that one would call fiscally conservative. I’m a big fan of balanced budgets. I think capitalism is a powerful, positive force. <\/p>\n
Linked with the advent of modern scientific inquiry, capitalism has done more to advance the material and moral well-being of humans than any previous ideology or religion.<\/p>\n
Despite what critics on the right and the left may say, I’m convinced that prosperity produces healthier, more ethical societies.<\/p>\n
Even the most advantageous human systems and philosophies are flawed and erratic; that’s what human society is all about. <\/p>\n
We’ve seen this illustrated in spades the last couple of years. Capitalism has tied itself in knots.<\/p>\n
There is certainly a need for more government regulation. Capitalism needs a rule-book. It needs the moderating hand of democratically-approved controls.<\/p>\n
(Not only to fix the economic mess, but also to deal with problems such as climate change.)<\/p>\n
Yet I remain skeptical about the stimulus program that President Barack Obama has created. Yes, it eases the short-term pain — an understandable and worthy goal.<\/p>\n
But what about the long-term? If the economy recovers, will government agencies gradually relinquish some of their awesome new power over trade and commerce? <\/p>\n
Will government investments be smart and targeted enough to help create new wealth?<\/p>\n
Or will the debt created by soaring rates of deficit spending reach a critical mass that drags down private-sector investment?<\/p>\n
Ultimately, my doubts are the result of living and working in rural communities most of my life. <\/p>\n
Many of America’s small towns — including here in the North Country — have lived for decades on the equivalent of stimulus spending.<\/p>\n
That’s what state prisons are all about. That’s what the Olympic Regional Development Authority represents. All those government jobs paid for out of Albany and Washington DC.<\/p>\n
Paid for, in the final equation, by taxpayers.<\/p>\n
That stimulus was supposed to spark this region’s private-sector into a renaissance, or at least a semblance of vitality. <\/p>\n
But with a few happy exceptions (I’m thinking of PARC and the Plattsburgh airport), private jobs haven’t followed the government dollars.<\/p>\n
Despite decades of taxpayer investment, the amount of real investment capital flowing into this region remains dangerously low. Unemployment remains high – and highly dependent on politicians living elsewhere.<\/p>\n
Will our national leaders do better? Will government find a way to stimulate the economy without becoming the economy?<\/p>\n
Or is the North Country a harbinger of what the US as a whole will look like in the future? <\/p>\n
Comments and arguments welcome.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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