It’s the economy, stupid.

And it’s the economy, smarty.

Our nation’s current crisis happens to be a great leveler and whether you dropped out of high school or graduated from an Ivy League, you’re qualified to be hit.

There’s no need to elaborate on the problem here.  If you have a mortgage, stock portfolio, retirement plan, newspaper, job, wallet, then you know what’s going on.

There’s no need to go into the cause either.  Talk radio hosts are pointing enough fingers already.

But why don’t we at least discuss the solution because $700 billion of our money is about to bail out the financial industry.

Congress and the President collectively know a lot about economic trends and political policies.  But who are the real experts when it comes to the marketplace?  WE THE PEOPLE!  It is us, the tax-paying and law-abiding businessmen and businesswomen, who determine how the markets play out, if our organizations will fail or succeed, and whether or not we will make our own American dreams come true.

Will a bailout prevent a lesson from being learned in the C-level suites on Wall Street or the poorly refinanced homes on Main Street?  What happened to the idea of laissez-faire capitalism?

Or do we come together for the common good in a time of crisis and work out a plan to help those in need as a recession will affect us too?  Should survival of the fittest only be applied to Darwinian nature?

The government’s role in our economy is unclear right now.  What should Uncle Sam’s job description be?