OPINION:
My problem with the process that took place last week is that all politicians take an arrogant approach to adopting strategies and responding to problems that are 100 percent opposed to the wishes of the people they represent, and the media are very supportive of this arrogance.
According to all the reports that have been promulgated thus far, the people of this nation were very much opposed to the bailout bill. (Reports have ranged between 60 percent and 70 percent against.) Yet the politicians still voted for the bill. I ask them this important question: Where is the representation in your vote?
Many economists and past chairmen of federal agencies have devised alternatives to what was passed. Why didn’t the politicians take just a little extra time - even spend entire nights and weekends to explore the possibilities? A “bottoms up” approach would have been more advantageous and a better alternative.
The plan they have saddled the taxpayer with is merely meant to free up credit so the markets can work as they are supposed to do. What it does not do is provide incentives to invest in the economy.
What is needed is for the partisanship to end. If a bill were passed that would reduce the capital gains taxes to zero, people would see this as an opportunity to invest. Why is this simple principle so hard for the people in Congress to understand?
What gives members of Congress the right to think they are smarter than the voters? Oh, to the contrary - look at the mess that they have gotten us into.
DONALD SHANKLE
Davidsonville, Md.
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