The view from here is: probably not. Everything in the American ethos and culture speaks against it.
Unlike in France, where the French Government is simply, "France," Americans, for the most part, view their government -- save defense spending -- usually as part of the problem, not the solution. 'Government is best which governs least' is a longstanding Americanism. And most investors/readers know about candidates who say they want to "get the Washington bureaucrats off the backs of the American people" and "clean up the mess in Washington!"
Americans are anti-central government, and they are anti-state (they generally dislike the limited federal government that exists). In the United States, it is always private first, public second.
FDR: vilified during his time
A classic case study demonstrating the above is FDR's presidency. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who, along with Lincoln, Washington, and Jefferson, ranks as one of the U.S.'s greatest presidents, was vilified in his time for introducing much-need public reforms -- government intervention. Called a socialist by political opponents, FDR, in fact, saved capitalism -- he certainly saved corporate capitalism as it is practiced in the United States -- with his New Deal reforms.
Above all, Americans want an economic framework that encourages entrepreneurship, innovation, ingenuity, dynamism, risk taking, wealth building, and commerce. What President Calvin Coolidge said accurately describes the United States: "The business of America is business."
But what many Americans fail to realize is that economic framework also has resulted in many excesses and mistakes, including the Great Depression of the 1930s, and sadly, large social inequalities, poverty, and the current financial predicament.
What to do, then, economically?
But then what will the United States do to correct its current problems? Well, historically, the trigger has not been 'what to do' but 'what happens.' Historically, the system strolls or moseys along until an event or crisis occurs, or until reform can not be prevented any longer, and only then are the reforms put in place.
The current quandary is being played out amid the 2008 U.S. presidential campaign and election. Now one would like to think that the American people could anticipate a problem and choose the right man or woman at the right time -- someone who they know will propose and help pass the precise measures needed to correct the nation's problem(s). Romantic? Yes. Demonstrated by history? No.
The truth is the American people don't send forth 'change agents.' They live with the status quo, until an event or crisis or serious failure tells them reform is needed. Usually at that point, reform is not only needed, it's long, long overdue. And only then does the system reform.
***
Editor Joseph Lazzaro is writing a book on the U.S. Presidency and the U.S. economy.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
9-06-2008 @ 1:42AM
BoboTheClown said...
Why do you believe that our "economic framework ... has resulted in ... poverty"?
Certainly there is a large disparity between rich and poor in America. However, there is a similar disparity between our "poor" and the average standard of living of most of the world, including about a billion Chinese communists (go visit rural China if you doubt this).
Millions of illegal aliens voluntarily choose to live in "poverty" in America every year, because it represents a huge improvement over their home.
9-06-2008 @ 7:27AM
MyKisa said...
Most people want mommie/daddy government to care for them...they just want to be able to say no when they choose to. It doesn`t work that way.
9-06-2008 @ 9:13AM
Judy Ferguson said...
STOP PAYING YOUR TAX! Start claiming dependants 10-20 since we have to bail out every bank and Freddie and Fannie who would rather put Americans on the street than work with them to keep their homes! Why doesn't Bush put some of the homeless in millions of vacant homes and the children that are living in cardboard boxes?
9-06-2008 @ 9:55AM
Tom said...
We have too much government now. The Grace report 25 years ago said that government was out of control and 30% should be eliminated.
The days when the only contact we had with the Federal goverment was the US mailman.We then had the highest standard of living in the world, our crime rate was very low, peoples doors where never locked, Yankee ingenuity was at it highest and we where the can do people of the world.
9-06-2008 @ 9:58AM
Tom said...
We have too much government now. The Grace report 25 years ago said
that government was out of control and 30% should be eliminated.
The days when the only contact we had with the Federal goverment was
the US mailman.We then had the highest standard of living in the
world, our crime rate was very low, peoples doors where never locked,
Yankee ingenuity was at it highest and we where the can do people of
the world.
9-06-2008 @ 10:44AM
brett king said...
Some of the actions I would like to see our governments, federal, state and local do would be to foster capitalism and to referee it. They would foster social programs that would provide for basic health care, education and a path to a self sustaining job.
9-06-2008 @ 12:30PM
NJSwampdragon said...
Do you really believe FDR didn't prolong the Great Depression? Milton Friedman certainly believes his policies were worng. "You know, it's a mystery as to why people think Roosevelt's policies pulled us out of the Depression. The problem was that you had unemployed machines and unemployed people. How do you get them together by forming industrial cartels and keeping prices and wages up?"
11-16-2008 @ 4:53AM
an afghan boy said...
hello every body
i think that your economy based on your action such as attacking to afghanistan and alos iraq and maybe iran .the money that you have to pay for this this battle is uncountable .
just think about it you can share your ideas with me via email .