The Way Forward
“The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present.... (We) must think anew and act anew." --A. Lincoln
You are standing at the door to a maze with several savvy policy advisors. (Tall men with white hair clearly familiar with leading.)
Ahead are branching paths. The risky and the practical. The complex and the straightforward. Some show you old maps. They claim they have been here before and offer safe passage. They caution, however, that they will not go any further than before and, as they have in the past, will exit well before reaching “a utopia.” They represent policy thinktanks.
Others with maps sketched on legal pads have new master’s degrees in public policy and finance. Several have bruises and wear tourniquets after falling out of the maze on prior attempts.
And there are those who, after many years of getting lost and finding their way back, want to tell you their war stories, as long as you buy the beer.
Who do you listen to? Who will you follow?
Consider first whether the goal is possible. After past attempts, our societies are still not as prosperous as they might be and nowhere near as fair as we would desire. And our governments have been rather pathetic when they attempt the public good. They seem better at protecting prior wealth.
Your advantage is in knowing that the maze represents the future and that virtually by definition old maps will not show you new openings.
You won’t lose anything (except perhaps a little time) by listening to those with experience. They’ll talk you, however, into indecision and permanent delay if you let them.
Actually, the game is worth it. Today we are simply treating the wounded and comforting the dying.
Actually, the maze is changing. If inflation is caused by both excess demand and limited supply (both defined by the other), then why are we only emphasizing the reduction of demand. New technologies have eliminated many past limitations on production, i.e. supply.
My point is this. I don’t see existing policy experts as the way forward. Some are using old economic models and others, wishful thinking and battle cries. We call them the right and the left. (Yes, I know that on both sides of the field are those simply out for power and fortune, but they are largely recognizable.)
Perhaps my favorite quote, especially as part of Copeland’s “A Lincoln Portrait.” I hear the music every time I think of the words:
“The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, we must think anew and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country.”