The Incredible Sinking Economy

by K. M.

I am a sixteen year old girl living in a time where the world's economy has been stricken into recession as swiftly as a natural disaster. There are precious few individuals worldwide who have remained unaware and unaltered by the situation. Millions of families have realized this, with the awareness that their money had deteriorated within just a few months. As Woodrow Wilson once stated, "The truth is we are all caught in a great economic system which is heartless." Lately, I have discovered just how heartless it can be.However, the effect on my family has been significantly milder than many others who have been severely transformed by the sudden financial breakdown.

My father is a sales director for Juniper Networks, and as such he is largely paid on commission. Thankfully, he is extremely adept and successful in his work, allowing my mother to stay home. In addition, my family has been pretty well off for a long time now. When my parents got married in 1992, they had nearly nothing, receiving no support from either of their parents, who had been struggling to keep their own families afloat. As avid savers, they began building and developing their newlywed life together and eventually could afford a small home on the outskirts of Sacramento. Though tiny and fatigued to the stranger's eye, to them it was home. It was at this house I was born. Gradually, they started nourishing our college funds and their own retirement funds with contributions each month, and gradually our family built up our finances. My father's concern with my family's fiscal well-being naturally rubbed off on us too. I began lessons from him on the financial world at age five, and thus began my childhood education. He would take me to the grocery store and pick me up to peer at the shelves, asking questions in reference to each item available.

"Okay, Kaila, which is a better deal, the Tide or the Downy?"

He would look down at me solemnly. I would carefully weigh the options just as he'd taught me - price, quantity, and quality, factoring in any sales the store was having before I responded hesitantly, "Tide?"

When I was right he'd offer his stamp of approval, elated that his only daughter possessed a mind suited for financial transactions. However, when I was wrong he'd explain the different options and weigh the pros and cons of each. Eventually, I became a professional at the "best buy" game. In eighth grade we took a class trip to Washington D.C., where our bus driver and tour guide would consistently quiz us on the workings of the political world. When I was the sole student on a bus of 30 students who knew that the federal chairmen of the board was Ben Bernanke and the previous chairman had been Alan Greenspan, my father was proud.

Currently, due to my upbringing, I feel substantially secure in my family and in my future ability to remain frugal. However, by no means have we remained unaffected the current crisis. One of my closest friends, a college student and full-time nanny, has been fired from her lucrative job and currently has no means of supporting herself. As the only member of her family in California, her support system is virtually nonexistent. Without a job, she won't be able to afford her housing and schooling expenses, and may be required to move back to Idaho and grow potatoes for a living with her family. With one crashing blow, the economic world crashed down, along with all of her dreams for a different life. In addition, I have many friends whose families are financially so in over their heads that they cannot afford what they once believed possible. As a student attending a private school in Burlingame, there was an unexpected abundance of girls who are unable to return next year because their families are unable to afford the extra cost. I myself have made the decision to attend Sequoia High School next year due to the recent downturn. Also, in an attempt to minimize future costs and get ahead on my college education, I am attending Canada college courses during the summers, utilizing the free program which Sequoia offers. In addition to the current universal financial situation affecting my family, my grandmother has also been living in a board and care facility, as she suffered a severe and paralyzing stroke in early March. Though my parents remain stubbornly taciturn about our financial situation, I recognize that this additional expense must be delivering quite an impact on both their stress levels and their bank accounts.

The imbalance of power in our state's government coupled with the worldwide financial failure simply plunged California into the dark abyss of debt on which we had been teetering. The education system, police force, state prisons, and every other state agency have felt the iron fist of our government far too frequently in the past years. There seems to be little hope of redemption for the wallets of any Californian whilst the universal economy is drained. In my opinion, the solution to California's economic issues is nearly the same as the solution for the worlds'. However, our nation must steel itself for things to get worse before they get better. The statement, "One must spend money to make money," absolutely applies here. Due to the fall in our economy, people have developed a tighter grip on their wallets, which causes our financial situation to depreciate even more quickly. To stimulate the economy, we must unclench our grasp and begin spending again. It is our job as consumers to, well... consume the products that businesses produce. Another idea which would revolutionize our country and revitalize our economy is the establishment of "green" technology. As Van Jones says in his book, The Green Collar Economy, "Choosing to invest in green technology on a massive scale would have the practical benefit of cutting energy prices enough-and generating enough work-to pull the U.S. economy out of its present death spiral." Though the initial cost of rebuilding and renovating our resources to adapt to more organic standards would be great, the effect would be even greater. "In 2006, renewable energy and energy-efficiency technologies generated 8.5 million new jobs, nearly $970 billion in revenue and more than $100 billion in industry profits." "Going green" would help bring our economy out of crisis, while also having a huge beneficial impact on the future of our world. One of the businesses my father is familiar with, a large corporation called DuPont, which was one of America's worst polluters, decided to invest in renewable energy. Their two decade effort to reduce carbon emissions resulted in nearly 3 billion dollar savings per year. Due to the success of the project, the company is now looking to cut more costs and invest in more environmentally friendly materials. DuPont is simply a representation of the possibilities for every company. With just a small initial investment, businesses can fund their futures. Although it will take an immense amount of effort to turn around not only our entire nation, but an entire world, we can succeed one company, and one individual, at a time.