The Carrot, the Stick, and the Correction to my Press Release

Recently I donated some of my money to the National Republican Congressional Committee.  (Why the Republicans instead of the Democrats?  Because more often than not, I tend to prefer the party of Carrot Economics to the party of Stick Economics; see the End Note at bottom for some quickie definitions.) 

Anyway, two days ago I found out that—because of my donation, plus the fact that I am the owner of a small business—they have bestowed upon me the title of “Honorary Chairman of the Business Advisory Council.”  Not only that, but they sent me a copy of their Press Release about me, designated “For Immediate Release.” 

For now, I’m taking this seriously.  As a result, I had no choice but to shoot off an emergency email to them, asking for a correction to the wording.  Best way to explain it is with a picture of the Press Release, followed by the important parts of my email to them explaining the urgency of my corrections.  I’m an optimist, so I’ll assume these corrections made it to them just in time.

Here’s the Press Release as they sent it, with my handwritten edits; click to enlarge.

Below are the important parts of my email back to Chairman Tom Reynolds:

Chairman Reynolds,

Although I'd like to thank you for my Honorary Chairmanship of the Business Advisory Council, I have an urgent change for you to make in my Press Release.  I hope it hasn't gone out yet, as it will no doubt be picked up immediately by the WSJ, NYT, WaPo, and Financial Times -- and you know those folks: it's like pulling teeth to get them to correct anything.  In any case, I hope you still have time to correct two errors in the last sentence: one minor omission, and one grievous factual error.

The factually incorrect sentence reads:

"Conover, who has long supported Republican ideals, particularly debt reduction and tax reform, will be a key member of the council."

Summary of corrections, and explanation:

1. (The minor omission.)  Please insert the word "some" just before "Republican ideals"; the reason is because I am flatly, unequivocally opposed to a balanced budget, and will remain that way until it is redefined to mean "the fiscal budget which results in a steady, unchanging ratio of debt to Gross Domestic Product."  I am also strongly opposed to using our nation's hard-won creditworthiness as a political weapon, as Newt Gingrich and others attempted in 1995 when they almost took the USA into default on its Treasury obligations by refusing to increase the financially-meaningless "Debt Ceiling" -- you know, the same meaningless "Debt Ceiling" the Democrats were so worked up about earlier this year (2006).

2. (The grievous factual error.)  Please remove the words "debt reduction and"; the reason is because I am flatly, unequivocally opposed to debt reduction.  I have been blogging for almost two years explaining why debt reduction is unnecessary in a growing economy, and have been lambasting politicians for demagoguing the debt question -- including any Republicans who attempt to play on the public's unfounded fear of the debt.

The factually correct sentence would therefore read:

"Conover, who has long supported some Republican ideals, particularly tax reform, will be a key member of the council."

Thank you for making those last-minute changes in my Press Release, Chairman Reynolds. 

Lastly: I presume you will be happy to know that, at my weblog, I have spent a lot more time lambasting Democrats than Republicans.  I think I've detected that the party which does not occupy the White House tends to say far more stupid things about the economy than the party in power—although it's definitely not a shutout by any means.

Sincerely,
Steve Conover
Honorary Chairman of the Business Advisory Council

Whew.  I sure hope they received these corrections in time.

==============

End Note:  Two quick definitions (mine, of course), as promised in the first paragraph above...

1. Carrot Economics:
"Growth is good."  Encourage innovation, and allow rewards to be reaped by anyone who can make better quality of life more affordable to the masses.  Expect median income to grow as a result, and expect some to get rich in the process.  Have faith in the future.  Trust in the competitive marketplace of ideas and incentives, and in the process of creative destruction.  Favor the experiment, learn, and adapt approach over the predict, commit, and plan approach.  The Carrot Economics crowd thinks "success" is when aggregate growth not only accelerates, but also produces pleasant surprises benefiting not just aggregate income, but also national security and the environment. 

2. Stick Economics:
"Rich is unfair."  Tax more and more heavily anyone who somehow got "rich" -- even if that status was achieved by making better quality of life more affordable to the masses.  Try not to get cornered into defining the word "rich" or discussing causes of "growth."  Trust the government to make fewer mistakes than the market makes.  Favor the predict, commit, and plan approach over the experiment, learn, and adapt approach.  Spread fear of the future, and suspicion of people and organizations who practice Carrot Economics.  The Stick Economics crowd thinks "success" is when the top two quintiles of households get their comeuppance for destroying the environment and for mercilessly suppressing the bottom three quintiles.