Two Wrongs Equal a Right?

I find it very ironic that the solution the government and economists provide for resolving the financial crisis is exactly the problem that caused the financial crisis. It seems to me that our current crisis was largely caused by people spending money they didn't have. Whether the money was spent on a $1000 TV or a $500,000 house, people were just living beyond their means.

The irony is that people are now being criticized for being thrifty and budget-conscious. We are being told to spend our hearts out to improve the economy, while at the same time we are told that we must learn from our past mistakes.

Reduced consumerism reduces manufacturing and product design jobs. I don't really see any way around it. The solution, however, is NOT to return to our old ways and spend our way out of the problem. At some point all that we consume must be paid for. We can not expect an economy spending money wisely to support the same manufacturing that was supported by an economy on a crash course with bankruptcy. Those jobs have to be lost. It is painful and undesirable, but sometimes we must get worse before we can get better. When our bodies require work, we do not emerge from surgery 100% better. Our bodies require recovery time to require, and the economy is the same way.

So to this I say, let home prices come tumbling down. Let those who purchased homes they had no prospect of ever being able to afford lose them, and let us all strive to live within our means and live a sustainable economic life.

The excesses of others have made life hard for those who chose not to buy in to the economic madness. The rise of double-income homes, childless marriages, and cheap credit allowed the price of homes to skyrocket of out control. I didn't even apply for jobs in California, because I knew that the lifestyle my family chose would not be possible due to the price of housing.

Two wrongs do not equal a right. We cannot spend our way out of the current mess--unless we are all spending money that we already have. Let us and our country move forward without our blatant disregard for the sustainability of our practices, so that life can be better for all of us.