Economy needs bolder solutions

There's been a lot said about giving the Obama administration more time to fix the economy, like, "It's only been seven months," or "This will take two years to make a difference."

Two years, are you kidding? We can't wait two years to see if the stimulus will work when there are already signs it's failing. The Obama administration unequivocally stated that we must have the stimulus or unemployment will rise above 8 percent. Well, it's at 9.5 percent and rising!

In our modern age, it doesn't take years to understand economic trends. We can crunch numbers and monitor the slightest change in economic indicators. Within weeks we can analyze the direction we're headed in, and it's not good.

While the Democrats repeat, ad nauseam, that no one is offering any solutions, hoping that the American people will believe them, there are plenty of alternatives being proposed. Here are just a few from American Solutions - a politically tri-partisan organization of which I am a member that believes real change requires real solutions.

Reduce the payroll tax by 50 percent for two years, resulting in an immediate increase in take home pay. Abolish taxes on capital gains, matching China's rate of zero and dramatically increasing investment in America. Reduce the corporate tax rate, matching the Irish rate of 12.5 percent (America has the highest corporate tax structure in the world). Abolish the Death Tax. We should not punish, but instead reward, people who have worked all their life to create wealth.

If you believe these solutions sound reasonable, then please contact your representatives. Also, visit americansolutions.com for more details.

Julie Schmidt

Elgin