Understandably there is a sense of urgency, sometimes verging on desperation. But while the need for immediate economic stimulus is clear, we should not and need not panic.
Let us not revert to old-world thinking about new-world challenges. Launching “public works” projects – putting people to work with shovels and jackhammers to put money into their pockets – is not the way to jump-start a 21st-century economy – or to build competitive advantage in the different world that is taking shape.
President Barack Obama and his administration understand that the US economy needs more than a relief package for troubled banks, asphalt for pot-holed streets and patches for schoolhouse roofs. They are proposing a higher-impact stimulus package that addresses future needs and national competitiveness.