Which way are you leaning?

f Hene IS No DouBT that everyone I speak with is fed up with the current state of our I economy. Actually. that is an understatement. ln my 30-plus years living in the U.S.,I have never heard it so loud and clear-and vitriolic. It does not seem to matter which way you voted last time for you to be fearful about the future. Everyone just sounds unhappy, whether as individuals or as employees watching the grim struggles of their companies and our industry.

I have never before sensed such pessimism towards the future of our great country. some have suggested that we are in a prolonged, Japanese-style recession, maybe worse. whereas the 1930s saw soup lines, we now see unemployment benefits lines. Three years into the recession, home prices, GDP, available credit, personal incomes, and employment are all lower than they were at the start.

About five years ago, when things still seemed great on the surface, I found myself commenting in my daily calls that I feared for America's future. I didn't mean politically. I was basing it on my travels, seeing first hand what was happening around the world, and using common sense that there would be great issues ahead for our country-the likes of which made me shudder and made me wonder who could or would attempt to solve them.

The biggest issue I saw then-apart from the out-of-control housing boom-was what I perceived to be the start of a change in the world economic order. The juggernaut of China already appeared unstoppable. And for years, the U.S. had been losing its manufacturing base to them and others. Thus, we have gradually, increasingly become a low-wage service economy. In my international travels, I saw what I perceived to be the first signs ofthe loss of the "empire" and a decline in our standard of living. I started to shut up when in return I heard back, "Alan, we are the united States of America. we will always be the leaders." And I could understand that viewpoint, as that is all most people here have ever known.

Now, as many of you know, I am a Brit by birth and lived through that country losing its empire. History is littered with the ruins of amazing empires crumbled to nothingRoman, spanish, Mongolian, Russian, etc. I know among my readers there will be thousands of conflicting opinions, and I am not suggesting that this country will go the same way. But history shows that these empires lasted at most only a few hundred years. And remember, a change in economic order generally leads to changes in power structure. of course, we may not see ourselves as an empire, but I think you understand the comparison.

In our lifetimes we have only been used to an amazing story of growth, power and innovation. We remain the most powedul militarily. We stilt invent most of the new technologies (although we are too willing to sell them off). In many ways, the U.S. remains the envy of the world. But that image and reality are changing. our nation is at an economlc crossroads. We have become too willing to accept mediocrity in everything-whether it be the goods and services we buy, our education system, or our way of life. Mediocrity leads to stagnation and decline long term.

Today, there is deep frustration, a feeling of hopelessness, and a sense that none of otr politicians really get it or are doing anything about our current issues. If we look back at the last few years, we have seen our home values substantially reduced-one in six homes now are sold at a loss (although many would argue this is only setting them back to reality), our savings decimated so that many of us have no cushion for the future our let alone spending for today, a fear that our pensions will not be there when we need them, high unemployment, rising health care and medical costs, and the list goes on. While these are all personal issues, there is a similar laundry list of business issues, such as over-regulated bureaucracy and deliberate currency under-valuation, that make it difficult to compete. This country has succeeded like nowhere else through true entrepreneurism-which today is being stifled. And all the tax dollars being thrown at the problems may in fact be worsening them. No one could disagree that there is far too much government waste and spending.

But, there is still time! We have been tested before and prevailed. There's no reason we can't do so again. We are past the point of Band-Aids. In next month's elections, all 435 House seats and 36 of the 100 Senate seats are up for grabs. While these may be only mid-term elections, they may be the most important ever. Let's ensure we have a leadership who understands we are a "government of the people, by the people, for the people."

Alan Oakes, Publisher ajoakes@aol.com

BPII Building Products Bigesr

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