Opinions Are Split on How Best to Spur Jobs - WSJ.com

Opinions Are Split on How Best to Spur Jobs - WSJ.com

Let's keep it simple and consider some of the 'macro' elements at play here:

1) Just as we don't make buggy whips and buggies or keep horses for transport anymore, advanced economies need to grow with lots of new ideas (e.g. Intel expansion plans, chemical plant cutback announcements in this past weeks WSJ).

2) What is the most efficient way to allocate resources and encourage people to study hard, work hard, invest and save, etc.? It's a free market (which is exactly what there is less and less of).

3) Do people work to provide for themselves or for retirees or non-producers? A good suggestion was made to stop indexing social security and to cap Medicare and government pensions.

4) As long as the government is spending 50% more than it's taking in - entitlement cutbacks are essential (but not discussed).

5) Borrowing from the future to fund current consumption is what has gotten the US and Europe into the mess it's in. If government can come up with grand plans (like the trip to the moon or serious changes to automated transportation (akin to the changes brought about by the internet), then these are worthy efforts).

But, in the interim, taking productive resources and allocating them to make-work or unproductive government jobs (of which there is a plethora already - base value on economic utility - not wish lists or social want lists) - othersize, isn't it like a family that runs up too big a debt on their credit cards and then hasn't got much disposable income left?

All governments in Europe and the US seem to be spending too much through borrowing. Where will this continued flow of savings come from?

Isn't this one of the bubbles that will have to burst? I.e. too much social spending; too much money taken from investors, savers and producers; reduced incentives throughout life to get an education, work hard and take care of oneself?