keep calm and carry on

This is the worst economic climate we have ever experienced. Life will never be the same again. We are doomed.

Or are we? What's with all the fear mongering these days? The economy is not in great shape, sure. But are all these crazy reactions helping? One of the higher-ups at my school recently declared that we are officially in a depression. He deduced this by reading Herbert Hoover's book about the great depression. Really? A depression? Seems a little premature and irresponsible to declare to a group of employees that the country is in such a state... but that's another blog topic.

A co-worker sent me a link to a great article that addresses this kind of narcissism that declares we as a country are in a uniquely terrible situation. I wish so much that the leaders of this country would show just a little optimism through this time. It would do so much good.

I'm not a huge fan of George Bush, but at least he had somewhat more of a positive approach to tough economic times, maybe even to a fault. I remember him coming under so much criticism for telling people to go shop when we were at war. Kind of a weird thing to say, I know, but I think he was trying to tell people to just go about their normal business, and by doing so, they would ensure the economy stays strong.

Here's a quote from the article above that stuck out to me:

During World War II, the UK was facing not only a suffering economy but also a daily pounding of heavy explosives from the enemy. In an attempt to quell the public anxiety, the British government posted signs around the city with the sage advice, “Keep Calm and Carry On.” Perhaps another reason to carry on is that, like all previous calamities, this too shall pass. And, if we keep calm, we may actually look back and gain confidence from the proof that history provides us. Leaders today may want to hunker down and send a similar message.

Oh that I wish the message of "Keep calm and carry on" would be the type of message we were hearing from the government. Instead, there is very little assurance and confidence and mostly a lot of fear mongering.

Can we get a grip for a moment? We're not in a unique situation here. This has happened before and will happen again, and we will survive.