no mo money …

The total sum of my life’s savings is in the hands of two separate financial institutions, both of which have failed in the past week.

Maybe I should be alarmed…

The total collapse of Washingtonb Mutual and Merrill Lynch has done little to alarm me… The disintegration of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac didn’t make me worry about our new mortgage… I have lost very little sleep whether I will be able to continue to support myself as a freelance media producer…

Maybe I am naive… but what I see is possibility… not just monetarily but socially…

The unsustainable lending and financial practices that have lead the nations largest banks and investment firms to their knees gives me hope for a better tomorrow, Maybe the crumbling of these mighty companies will provide some motivation for individuals to look at the way they live their lives.

Seeing the result of short-sighted and irresponsible lending perhaps we will reevaluate other practices that we take for granted. Perhaps we will begin to realize that the greatest return on our dollar comes through investing in education. If we want a rich and financial sound country we must take our money out of bonds and put them into books.

After we address our education system maybe we can turn to other American institutions that seem to be broken… perhaps our healthcare and then maybe our transportation system… renewable energy… habitat protection… affordable housing… maybe even social equality for everyone… The sky is the limit.

This financial melt down could result in a total restructuring of our national priorities….

or…  We could just bail everyone out and go about our business. .

We must have the courage to elect leaders that will lead our country with a strong heart and firm will. Just as a good parent wouldn’t keep a child from experiencing the consequences of her mistakes, we must elect a leader that will allow individuals and institutions that make money off of the poor and under-educated to feel the effects of their actions…

My mother is far from perfect but she taught me at least three valuable lessons. One, to live within my means, two, that each individual is divine and, three, to leave each place I touch better off then when I found it.

I pray that we can elect a leader that will guide us to do the same…
 

Carl D. Brown... Street Team '08