Common sense says that one should not spend more than they have, and if they do, they need to be able to pay for it plus the interest over a set amount of time or there will be severe consequences. Today, we find ourselves in a global economic recession, one that the majority of those alive today in the United States have not seen.  And the response from the consumer, businesses, and the government is frightening.

The U.S. Government is being urged to pass a stimulus package that is upward of $900 BILLION. Think about that for a moment. We as a country have not done a good enough job trying to keep our country afloat over the past twenty years, fighting the ongoing battle of budget deficit, year-in and year-out.

I know I’m not telling you anything that you haven’t already thought of, but today I hit my tipping point. I received the survey question below, asking for my opinion on what a group called “Save Our Economy” is requesting – a national mortgage holiday for one year. WOW – imagine that, those who cannot pay their home payments today will be allowed to live for the next year without making a payment, and then what will have changed?  Are they going to be in better position to make the payment a year from now?  Are they going to have saved enough money during that time to have some in reserve?  Isn’t saving counterproductive to a stimulus, where the goal is to increase spending so that the economy picks up?  What about those in retirement who are counting on the interest from their investments to live on month-to-month.  That money would disappear if the banks are not able to collect payment on loans due with the interest being the key to the retirement compensation.

And as of today, the report is saying there are 11 Million unemployed workers in the United States, which is more than the population of New York City and Chicago combined.  Do you think it is going to get better soon?

So how do we fix this?  Well, if I knew the answer, I probably wouldn’t be sitting here writing this blog today.  But as a business owner, with more than 20 years of experience, I would say that it is time for us to suck it up and stop looking for a handout.  That means that we need to change the way we live, from the way we spend and save, the way we communicate, even the way we do business.  It’s time for all of us to take that long look in the mirror and make the tough decisions of what we do, how we do it, and how we will survive.  WE CAN AND WE WILL SURVIVE – THIS IS NOT A DOOMSDAY PROCLAIMATION!

But what is clear to me is that the “Stimulus Package” that is sitting in the Senate is not the right thing to do.  That package, which is full of Pork Barrel spending, is nothing more than putting off the inevitable.  Tomorrow is too late to respond to this challenge; we must take it on today. 

Tomorrow I’ll take a crack at what and how I think we should attack the economic problem, but in the meantime, send me your thoughts and concerns.