Our nation was born in the Age of Reason. Has that been supplanted by the Age of Irresponsiblity? Jeremy MccArter's article "Reagan Was Wrong" in the June 29, 2009 issue of Newsweek highlights a lot of what I observe.
The uproar in the 60s devolved into a decade of declining economy ending with Jimmy Carter's depressing steps to restrict speed limits to 55 and limit gas purchases, along the soaring interest and inflation rates. Then comes Ronald Reagan who took the brakes off with an anything goes, do what every you want attitude. No longer did deficits matter, drive as fast as you want, be as greedy as you want, reduce the obligation of those who have benefited the most from our society by reducing their taxes at the expense of the less fortunate, don't worry about environment - just rape the earth, don't feel any obligation to those who can't make it - just abandon them to the streets (he closed the mental hospitals in California as Governor and let the communities assume the responsibility which they did not do), let the homeless sleep under bridges and beg on the streets. Fail to reach the standard of developed nations by limiting the quality and quantity of health care to the ability to pay. I could go on and on with this.
The point is that all of this is contrary to the values of our country which hail from the Scottish philosophers John Locke (with the help of Thomas Jefferson his ideas found their way into the Declaration of Independence) and Adam Smith who in the Wealth of Nations set down the basis of democratically controlled capitalism. Many don't know however that Adam Smith also wrote a book on morality and was clear that his capitalistic system would not work without a moral population. In practice we see that without limits imposed by the government, greed displaces morality among the economic movers and shakers.
The current near collapse of the global economy, a very deep recession with extended unemployment over 17% and approaching that of the great depression is the consequence of this 26 years of irresponsble govenment that did not do its duty to limit the excesses that are part of human nature or tend to the economic realities or foster a tone at the top for proper education and preparation of the population to keep the country globally competitive.
