Fear Itself

A friend of mine, Phil Nash, posted a piece this week entitled Fear Itself. The article begins by describing the family.

My grandparents, Herman and Grace Nash, were raising three little boys when the stock market crashed in 1929.

As the writing proceeds Phil reminds us of the famous Roosevelt speech in which the words

nothing to fear but fear itself

appear. Roosevelt's words

set the stage for the drastic overhaul of government, the business sector and the nation itself that was to take place in the next decade.

Today we find our nation on the brink of a circumstance similar to the times of Roosevelt. Our government is spending money at an unsustainable rate. Money is being thrown at a failing financial sector in the name of "bailout" and "rescue." We shall see where the course leads in time.

Maybe we should follow Phil's advice

Instead of seeing this period as a temporary setback to our dreams of personal wealth and individual excess, we can look back to the 1930s and remember that Social Security and other progressive foundations of our current social contract had their beginnings at a time when we as Americans were pulling for each other instead of for ourselves.

If we pull together we have a much better chance of survival for the long haul. We will stand together or we will fall apart.

Peace.