Why Have We Forgotten How To Get The Economy Going Again?
New Economic Perspectives has the article False Choice or Real Possibilities. The article gives the historical record that leads up to the ultimate question.
Given the overall results of the U.S. experience with dramatic, targeted efforts of sovereign spending in World War II, given the proof that the federal government and central bank have the means to effectively manage and maintain the value of the U.S. currency in spite of massive expenditures of government fiat money, given the fact we know, from experience, all this can be done without “nationalizing” the economy—and that, in fact, the doing of it, if properly managed, will produce an unprecedented expansion of private innovation, investment, business creation, and employment opportunities for American citizens—given that we historically know all of this, why should we not feel comfortable to undertake, once again, substantial sovereign spending programs to achieve critical collective objectives? And if, indeed, we should do that, why don’t we?
There is only one candidate now running for President who has the breadth of vision to imagine asking this question. He has hired the right economic advisers to give him the logical answer. Are we all smart enough to vote for that candidate, or are we willing to live with the false choices the other candidates all present?
Who knows when a candidate will come around again to offer us the choice that Bernie Sanders is offering? It may occur in my lifetime, or it may not. Part of my success in life is not so much that I was just lucky. At least part of it was that when opportunity came knocking, I was in a position to open that door to the call. Is our country ready to open the door to a better future?