Dismal Ratings and Dismal Reform

Status quo, you know, is latin for 'the mess we're in'. - Ronald Regan

Its a fact; the poverty rate in America is expanding rapidly, and unemployment rates still remain frightfully high. The current state of our economy is evidently quite gloomy. In spite of these circumstances, the government at large has failed to comprehensively and effectively address this pressing dilemma. Why aren't we making progress? And what will it take to turn America back towards the abundant prosperity that we were once characterized by?

I believe the problem is multifaceted, and quite frankly America will not recover unless we address the plethora of fallacious and harmful inconsistencies that plague and hamper every attempt to treat our economic illness. The two main epistemological flaws that restrict our economy from flourishing are 1 - A Victim Mentality, and 2 - Insanity (as defined by Einstein). Allow me to examine and elaborate upon each of these issues independently in order to explain and clarify my argument.

1 - The Victim Mentality
During the campaign of President Barak Obama, he frequently blamed President Bush for economic turmoil and a host of other predicaments. What the President fails to see is that his administration didn't simply "inherit" the "worst recession since the great depression". The majority of us sat back and apathetically observed as our economy slowly deteriorated under a obsolete and inefficient Keynesian economic approach. Playing the blame game only perpetuates our suffering, and ultimately gets nothing accomplished. The economic turmoil we are currently experiencing will not lessen unless citizens and civil officials alike take responsibility and passionately endeavour to fix the mess each of us has made. We are not victims, and to act like we "inherited" this problem is a childish excuse for inaction and complacency.

2 - Perpetuating Insanity
Albert Einstein once said, "Insanity [is] doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." For decades, America has been governed by a progressive ideology which contends that running a deficit is feasible and practical and that spending our way out of a recession is possible and in fact ideal. In short, we have stuck to Keynesian economics in spite of its historical inefficiency. Our President has proposed multiple policies to address our economic woes, from the stimulus to the financial reform bill. However, we fail to see solid results, primarily because we refuse to adopt new remedies. For years, we've held to Keynesianism, with little to show for it. Isn't it time to try something new? Perhaps more regulation and excessive spending isn't the solution? Would it kill us to broaden our horizon and change our approach? Enough of the same old redundant outlook that's got us into this problem; it's time for a new approach.

Unfortunately, our government isn't commonly characterized by wisdom and responsibility. But all hope is not lost, the future can be prosperous and blissful if we emphatically pursue a rational and historically effective approach to economics. The status quo is indeed messy, but if we adopt a fresh and sensible approach, we can begin to treat, and potentially cure, our dismal condition.