Dialogues Government and the Economy: Three Dialogues

Dialogues

Government and the Economy: Three Dialogues

One of the leading topics in American society today is the economy and the government's role in it; and there are very diverse views on that subject. For more than two years now the U.S. economy has been in a recession. Actions by the government to spur economic growth seem to have had a minimal effect. Many ask what should the government do to address this problem, others say the government has done enough, and more federal intervention can only lead to more problems.

The first subject was a white male, 44 years of age, who is a manager in a supermarket. The subject has a negative attitude toward unions and the amount of money spent by the government on pay and benefits for public union members. He stated that taxes were too high and his money should not be spent on "lazy government workers." As a former member of the military the subject was extremely hard working, polite, and independent. He felt that the average American was too dependent on the government for everything, and if people were more independent, they wouldn't need the government so much. It is the American dependence on government to solve all of life's problems that have led to the overspending by the government.

The second subject was a 29-year-old white female teacher. She just had her second child and although she is part of a public union, she feels that the government spends too much money on superfluous things instead of concentrating on serious matters. While she agrees that government spending must be cut, she think that education is too important and shouldn't be cut. Instead, the government should raise taxes on wealthy businesses in order to balance the budget. She feels that the government has an important role to play in society, and stated only the government can do certain things like build roads and airports, or run a school system.

Finally the last subject was a 76-year-old African-American female immigrant from Jamaica. She had been in the United States since the 1980's and has worked as a cleaning woman until her retirement in 2005; when she retired to spend her time taking care of her many grandchildren. This subject may have been the most typical of all possible American subjects as she both blamed the government for the current economic problems and thought that the government was the only way out of the current economic mess. First, she blamed former President George Bush for the collapse of the economy, stating that it was his insistence on going to war that caused the problem. She also felt that while the government had a role to play in society, but that it had so far failed in this role. When asked what role the government should play, she replied "to make life more fair for the poor people." And while she does not blame Obama for the economy, stating that he was doing the best he could, she also was forced to admit that he was not doing a very good job.