I had the opportunity to watch U.S. mayors on C-Span ask for change and bold action.Several communicated that they are close to the people hardest hit by the economic disaster and that most of America lives in urban areas/big cities.
"The senators need to stop business as usual here in Washington and get to work on a bill that can be presented to get people back to work."
"The economic news on Main Street is bad and is getting worse. Every day all of us have seen more and more people unemployed in our cities, more people losing their homes, small businesses that are ... closing their doors," Diaz said. "Our people continue to suffer, and we're here to support the president's call for a stimulus package."
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/04/mayors.economy/IIRC, some American's were hungry for change last November...
What are these Mayors doing to stimulate their cities growth? Are they seeking rebuilding / seeking new manufacturing jobs? Maybe they are borrowing money to rebuild crumbling schools and infrastructure?
If they are closest to the problems, what are they doing? Are they like the Wall Street leadership looking for a Federal Taxpayer handout? Yet fail in their responsibility to their stakeholders, the citizens that are hardest hit by the economic collapse?
Are the mayors they lobbying their state governments for money? Jobs? Projects?I also listened to Obama talk about mandated 'reform' for Wall Street and CEO's and bailout recipients. What about reform for cities that allowed schools and infrastructure to crumble?
When are cities and states going to be responsible contributors to our 'shared success'?
If they contain the majority of the population, why isn't the majority of the population finding their own solutions? In my theory, they must have the most available resources, wealth, high property values, etc. They should be best able to spend themselves and their cities out of this depression.
IMO, there is a hugh difference between bold action and stupid action. Barney Frank has warned against stupid part. IMO - government needs to stop doing stupid things to.
Maybe the stimulus isn't working because the money is going offshore faster than the internet...that's why Americans continue to feel so much pain. None of the stimulus money seems to flowing to Main Street. Why should it? Just grow a pipeline to India and China and open the tapper.
If we're all in this together, when are the smallest units of government, cities, and states going to start carrying their share of the burden? Why aren't they borrowing against the future prosperity of their children and grandchildren?
The problems with the financial sector, Wall Street are a mirror of what is going on in our government, local, state, and federal. No responsibility. No accountability. Just look for another handout. Only bold action seems to be the perks and tax benefits they take.
Wall Street and banks got too big, so did government. The leadership is to far removed from those that own the company - stockholders and 'we the people'. Was the Obama campaign a grassroots thing? When are the roots expected to help grow the rest of the plant? What happens to a plant that looses it root system? IIRC from science class, many wither and die.
So goes America. The plant is separated from the roots...jmho