Tom Friedman nails it in his op-ed piece in today’s NY Times. His comparison of Hong Kong’s modern airport to JFK mirrors my own experience last week leaving Munich and arriving at Dulles with its antique mobile lounges and confused immigration lines.
But his most important point is about how the the rescue package for the US economy gets spent:
That’s why we don’t just need a bailout. We need a reboot. We need a build out. We need a buildup. We need a national makeover. That is why the next few months are among the most important in U.S. history. Because of the financial crisis, Barack Obama has the bipartisan support to spend $1 trillion in stimulus. But we must make certain that every bailout dollar, which we’re borrowing from our kids’ future, is spent wisely.
It has to go into training teachers, educating scientists and engineers, paying for research and building the most productivity-enhancing infrastructure — without building white elephants. Generally, I’d like to see fewer government dollars shoveled out and more creative tax incentives to stimulate the private sector to catalyze new industries and new markets. If we allow this money to be spent on pork, it will be the end of us.
Jim
Discoverers and Discoveries 