This is an essay about life, love, and purpose juxtaposed with economics, how it can be used effectively to build for the future, and how we can participate in it without asking anyone for their permission to do so. It is intended for the young of heart, for those who appreciate goals and objectives that encompass the good that we can do. By any other term that is empowerment, whether anyone is personally enriched by it or not. And in this age of selfish pursuits, an altruistic outcome is at least worthy of the effort. So let’s kick-start this composition with a jewel of a poem that can penetrate our sensibilities and elevate our souls. You won’t find inspirational poetry like this very often anymore.

By George Linnaeus Banks

I live for those who love me,
Whose hearts are kind and true ,
For the heaven that smiles above me,
And awaits my spirit, too;
For all human ties that bind me,
For the tasks by God assigned me,
For the bright hopes left behind me,
And the good that I can do.

I live to learn their story
Who suffered for my sake,
To emulate their glory,
And follow in their wake;
Bards, patriots, martyrs, sages,
The noble of all ages,
Whose deeds crown history’s pages,
And Time’s great volume make.

I live to hold communion
With all that is divine,
To feel there is a union
’Twixt Nature’s heart and mine;
To profit by affliction,
Reap truths from fields of fiction,
And, wiser from conviction,
Fulfill each grand design.

I live to hail that season,
By gifted minds foretold,
When men shall rule by reason,
And not alone for gold;
When man to man united,
And every wrong thing righted,
The whole world shall be lighted
As Eden was of old.

I live for those who love me,
Whose hearts are kind and true ,
For the heaven that smiles above me,
And awaits my spirit too;
For the cause that lacks assistance,
For the wrongs that need resistance,
For the future in the distance,
And the good that I can do.

Life, love, purpose, and commitment are themes that many writers seek to tap. Few of us do it as well today as George Linneaus Banks did nearly 200 years ago. His words transcend the preacher’s forum while seeking to find common grounds on which to build a connection with the Divine. That is about as close to things spiritual that this essay on the dismal science of economics will venture into.

But even economics seems to improve its stance considerably when it reaches out to find the good that is within us. And so, this essay is more about vision than about divinity. Vision is a subject that seems to escape the limitations of most politicians, so it is already on better grounds than are those not endowed with inner clarity or that probe the unknown with limited mental acumen.

I also like to use the worldly view of 3^rd graders as my point of reference when seeking to explain subjects beyond the grasp of legislators who have yet to find their purpose in life. Some might say that is because they (the politicians) are still digging to find their final containment space. I was once forced to think about this subject and my own place in it when I was in 3^rd grade. My teacher asked me in a stern sort of way to recite George Banks’ poem entirely from memory. I’m certain it was not because she liked me. Fortunately, I did not have many thoughts of any kind swimming in my head at the time, so the degree of difficulty about her subject was not an insurmountable task.

Vision, however, is grander is scope and more pointed in purpose than is reciting a poem. At a minimum it requires some cunning and a few skills that look “over the horizon.” George Banks had mastered those skills well. Today we don’t elect politicians without that “vision” thing wafting about inside their heads. Why not hold writers to the same standard?

Like most economic subjects, my purpose circumnavigates the term “big bucks.” About $20 trillion over 10 years is a better estimate. If $20 trillion dollars in one dollar bills were laid end-to-end, they would stretch from here to the moon and back more than 20,000 times. Still, that is probably “chump change” when viewed from the perspective of those yearning to be numbered among the ultra-wealthy.

Now back to our class of 3^rd graders more in need of a good challenge than a lot of money.

Our Objective: We need to expand opportunities so many more of our residents can contribute to our society whose only reward is in “the good” that they can do. Forget about those who believe they are entitled to $100 million for themselves for hitting a golf ball, or those who inherit more wealth than they can count, or even those who believe they are the “chosen few” and deserve more than the rest of us...just because. Specifically, we need to attract those who are willing to devote a small part of their time in raising GDP by an average of 0.1 percent per year over the next 20 years.

Vision. We need to set our sights on a time when courage is more than a slogan; when there would be funds enough to pay for sending everyone to college for a 4-year degree who wants it, at zero cost to taxpayers. The longer run payoff would be in creating more prosperity, more appreciation for making a difference in the lives of those who need it, and a greater love of country for all who believe America is worth the effort. We owe it to ourselves, to our heritage, and to our posterity. We will know we are on that train that is “bound for glory” when these pursuits are passed on and embraced by 3^rd graders.

How? Raising GDP by 0.1 percent could be accomplished by setting a goal of $50 billion per state, set proportionately by each state’s population. For example, a state with twice the national population would have a goal that is twice the national average. In 20 years, we could raise GDP by $5 trillion. All that would be required is that we raise our M1 money supply by approximately 12.5 billion annually. And that could be done with greater certainly by boosting the lending power of credit unions. I won’t bore anyone with more math, easy as that task actually is. Suffice to say that credit unions lend out 70 percent of their available funds to households; commercial banks do not. Science is about facts, not opinions. Facts also are not subject to debate, political “jib jab” to the contrary notwithstanding. All the rest is verifiable by 3^rd grade arithmetic and the power of those who have the will to find the “good that they can do.”

Oversight. This proposal and its progress will need to be monitored by a dispassionate group consisting of Federal Reserve members, academic community members, and non-political PTA members from public and private schools. Anything more is overkill; anything less is idle chatter.

I am going to end this essay with a bit of self-promotion. It’s another version of What I Live For. I read it to a small group of stellar citizens from my hometown, and it was well-received by them. And that is good enough for me.

* * * *

What I Live For

by Edward Phillips

I live to choose what’s right for me
To maximize my will
To find the good that I can do
Beyond a moment’s thrill:
To touch a heart
To bend a mind
Away from evil’s reach
To educate and cultivate
And soothe but never preach.

This world is full of challenges
Along every lonely ridge
When outward troubles dim my eye
I try to build a bridge
Above the flames of dark and night
So all the world can see
There’s so much more
From shore to shore
On which we can agree.

Still I am impatient
And cannot wait
For time to tear down wrongs
The hungry and the weak require
I break away from throngs—
And boldly take that daring step
That others say is wrong
And find my footing
What e‘er the cost
That’s right where I belong.

The devil has his due they say
There’s good in every one
Judge not my sins
Forget my wins
Until the race is won.
And when that day at last is here
I will not look for praise
May we both arrive
At the mountain’s top
Although in different ways.