Economy Awareness Seminar 2008 Essay Winners

Editor’s Note: Anna Jacks submitted one of the ten winning essays in our Economy Awareness Seminar 2008 cash prize giveaway. This is the second submission to be featured in our Contest Winners Series. Each day EconomyInCrisis.org will feature one of the winning submissions. Thank you to all of the applicants.

Our economy needs to be repaired from the top down. Salaries of executive branch elected officials should resemble a more typical American wage, being paid at a rate of $75 per half day and $150 per full day for a total possible amount of $54,750. Compensating the President with an additional $75 a day and the vice president with $50 a day would adjust their salaries to $73,000 and $82,125.

White House shopping should be done with the same budget as the average American. Perks such as personal chefs in the White House should cease. Locally elected officials should earn the median income of their constituents. The money saved would be used to refuel our economy through programs and wages.

Corporations that participate in outsourcing jobs away from Americans should be fined in the amount of $7 an hour per non-American worker as long as unemployment exists in America. This standard should apply to all companies no matter the size or revenue. America needs to increase its own revenue and the only way to do this is to take pride in American made products and in Americans.

Alternate natural energy sources need to be utilized effectively and immediately. All government lighting, buildings, and vehicles, as well as school buildings and buses should be powered by sun and wind. This money, in turn, could be injected back into our economy by way of increased salaries for school employees and monies distributed by local governments to programs that assist those in need of financial assistance. Using the power of electricity does not eliminate a cost issue. Batteries still need to be charged, thereby raising the cost of electric.

Building homes and businesses to withstand category 4 hurricanes should be legally required in areas where hurricanes are prevalent. Millions, and cumulatively billions, of dollars are spent on these areas. I am not suggesting these areas not receive aid, merely that if some common sense requirements were put in place before the rebuilding of such areas, government expenditures would decrease. The less money the government spends, the smaller our national deficit becomes, and the higher the value of the American dollar.

There should be a specific percentage in place for the rate at which the healthcare industry can make a profit. Insurance rates will continue to rise as healthcare costs rise, all in the plight of making the rich richer. This makes the idea of even affordable health insurance in the future a mute point. People without adequate insurance can become physically unwell. People who are not physically well cannot maintain the work level required to meet daily living needs and feed into a poor economy.

The time is now and some serious action needs to be taken in order to improve the American economy. Our country is in a state of urgency, as are its citizens. Unless we are willing to tighten our belts and get to the business of our economy, our beloved country will divide and fall.

Click Here For Solutions To America's Economic Problems

Click here to contact your Representative in Congress.

Spread this message with Digg, Del.icio.us, Reddit, or Stumbleupon, and subscribe to the RSS Feed to track articles