Hanson on Target Again

I rarely tire of reading commentary by Victor Davis Hanson.

He is a conservative writer but by no means an ideologue. He is fair and pragmatic and "calls 'em as he sees 'em" no matter if its a Republican or a Democrat who is his target.

In his recent article The Moral Economy, (written for Real Clear Politics) he cuts to the chase about what's really wrong with our economy and political system. Hanson's conclusion is that as a society we have lost the ability to restrain our desire for instant gratification and our political leaders have lost the will to lead us to make difficult choices.

First he discusses America's spendthrift ways:

"American households have on average the largest houses in the world, the most cars and plentiful conveniences like big-screen televisions and DVD players. Yet there is a growing sense that we are paying the tab by borrowing trillions from the Chinese, Japanese, Europeans and South Koreans.
Some economists might argue that it is a win/win situation to have others toil to send us their cheap consumer goods, lend us the money to buy them and get little interest back on their debt. But when in history has a debtor ever felt better - in a moral, psychological or practical sense - than his lender?"

Then he considers what our courageous political leaders have to offer:

"Our candidates avoid that sort of honest tough talk. Republicans instead want an indebted government to pump up the economy by interest-rate cuts and tax rebates. And if we listen to Democrats, you would think no American could survive another maxed-out credit card without another new government bailout program."

Finally, some Hanson realism:

"First, at this late date, Republicans shouldn't vote for any candidate who promises another tax cut without first offering a matching slash in expenditures. And Democrats should reject any candidate who promises another multi-billion dollar entitlement without detailing how the additional revenue is to be raised.
Second, instead of demanding new billion-dollar programs for health care and education, we should take more responsibility for our own welfare.
Americans need to readjust their budget priorities. One might be able to believe that a $200 dollar a month private catastrophic health plan is out of the reach of most Americans - if we were also to hear that sales of video games, cell phones and plasma televisions have crashed."

Read the whole article. You will agree that he's hit the nail on the head.