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Calvin Coolidge said, "After all, the chief business of the American people is business." That has never been truer than today.  We live in a transactional culture, pure and simple.  Therefore, I believe it would help us to think of this national election as if we, the people, were hiring a President/CEO of USA, Inc.

In the 21st century, our country is much more like a mega-size corporation than it is the idealistic land of the free, home of the brave, let the eagle soar iconography of song and story.  If we are going to survive in this extraordinarily competitive and evolving global economy, we must integrate into government the best practices of the business world or we will continue to be shouldered out of the limelight on the world’s economic stage.

If we look at our country in more business-like terms, it will allow us to evaluate better what is and what isn’t working, much in the same way that General Motors, Citigroup, Wal-Mart, and IBM evaluate their business plans and analyze their balance sheets.  For these American giants, it’s all about shareholder value -- growth, profit and a significant return on the investment to the stockholders.

So, in our hiring phase for USA, Inc., we’ve narrowed our choice down to two candidates for the position of President/CEO.  In their job interviews, we must demand that they be asked tough, specific questions about how they are going to pull our country out of the sea of red ink in which we are drowning. 

Each citizen is a stockholder in this extraordinary enterprise, and therefore shares our debt.  The questions we need answered by our aspirants must detail how they are going to deal with what is a staggering $9.65 trillion (yes, that’s trillion) dollar debt that is growing daily.  I realize some economists say that number is manageable relative to our Gross Domestic Product, which was $13.7 trillion in 2007.  Well, my common sense tells me it’s going to have to come from somewhere.  We need real answers on how they are going to approach balancing the books.

The benefits of attending a regional AmCon show are significant. The AmCon Texas Contract Manufacturing Expo will be held in Houston, TX on October 29-30, 2008 at the Reliant Center at Reliant Park - Hall A2.  According to Kati Olson, President, “AmCon is the most effective show in Texas where job shops and contract manufacturers can meet face-to-face with serious OEM buyers of custom manufacturing services from the region."

 Vantage Technology is the premier manufacturer of third-party certified electrical connectors for use in hazardous environments. Cheryl Reid is the Purchasing Manager and said of her AmCon experience, “It is a good place to meet regional suppliers and to get ideas on what is available. I like to order from suppliers in my state when possible, an AmCon regional manufacturing event helps.  I also am always looking for ISO certified machine shops, and they are easy to spot at the expo.”

If you read my last column, you know I argued that $4/gallon gasoline and $140+ oil was key to the United States being willing invest in a Manhattan-style Project to break our addiction to foreign oil.  I acknowledged the very real fiscal pain that so many of us are experiencing.  Yet, I argued that to revive our economy and to shore up our national security, we had to retool and commit to an alternative energy-based future.

In the past two weeks, crude oil futures have fallen more than $14 per barrel and gas prices at my local station dropped more than $.30/gallon.  While I am delighted that filling up my tank takes $3.60 less in my Honda CRV, I do not believe the price drop will lull us back into our petroleum-induced somnambulism.  Even, if the price drops lower.

Something wonderful has awakened among our citizenry.  I’ve had conversations and overheard folks discussing investments in alternative energy, being willing to consider forms of shared sacrifice and of seeing this challenge as an opportunity for a better future.  We, the people, know we cannot fix this mess by going shopping.  Or by drilling, alone.

Folks as far left and right of the ideological spectrum as Al Gore and T. Boone Pickens are delivering the same core message that we must break our addiction to foreign oil as our primary source of energy.  They are putting considerable time and resources into their efforts.  The country is ripe for having these conversations and it is deeply encouraging.

It is vital that we keep up the pressure upon those in government and those aspiring to office to make the tough decisions that will move our country to a more stable future.  We must not squander this opportunity.

As aspect of a new energy policy, we need to address our crumbling infrastructure.  We must repair our badly neglected roads and bridges.  To pay for this, we need raise the money and not just keep borrowing.  Already, revenue from the gas tax is projected to decrease by $3 billion due to reduced consumption.  Were we to pass a dedicated gas tax of $.50/gallon, we would not make up for the lost revenue but could begin to restore our highway system to its preeminence and our bridges up to code.  It’s not pretty, it’s not sexy but it must be done. 

If you think we do not have the political will to increase taxes at this time, think about tax increases we are already paying, albeit not overtly.  A toll road here, a precipitous raise in property evaluation there, an excise fee on this or that license, all add up.  They are tax increases.  If we had a dedicated gas tax, we would know exactly how much it was to be, we would be guaranteed it would go to infrastructure and not be just absorbed into general funds.  Highway and construction jobs created would funnel the money back into our economy.  Not into the economies of Saudi Arabia, Russia or Venezuela.