Monday, February 22, 2010

If you've ever wondered....where does the money go?

Where Does the Money Go?: Your Guided Tour to the Federal Budget Crisis Where Does the Money Go?: Your Guided Tour to the Federal Budget Crisis by Scott Bittle

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the book for you.  We often hear how our overspending ways will lead to our demise.  In the partisan bickering that bogs down our political system, it is difficult to figure out the extent of the real threat.  Just how bad is it?

Scott Bittle and Jean Johnson make it very clear -- it's really bad.  They move beyond the hyperbole and finger pointing to highlight the sources of our fiscal crisis and how it threatens our future.  Writing in an accessible style, the authors dispel myths about the largest categories of federal spending (spoiler alert: no, it is not welfare or defense) and show exactly why and how we're headed for trouble.  Bittle and Johnson illustrate in painful detail how push is going to come to shove once the Baby Boomers hit retirement and draw upon Social Security and Medicare benefits.

Here are six things, Bittle and Johnson think every American should know about the federal debt dilemma:
The Budget Debate: Parking-lot Version:

1. For thirty-one out of the last thirty-five years, the country has spent more on government programs and services than it has collected in taxes.

2. Every year the government comes up short, it borrows money to cover the difference. We've now built up a very big debt —roughly $9 trillion, and yes, that is trillion with a t.

3. The country will have humongous additional expenses over the next couple of decades as the baby boomers begin to retire and need more medical care.

4. There is no realistic way government can lower taxes (or even keep them at current levels), spend money on everything people want the government to do (at least according to the polls), and still end up with a balanced budget.

5. If we keep on going the way we're going, the debt will get bigger and begin to endanger the U.S. Economy and our own personal finances and plans. And the government won't have enough money to pay for Social Security and Medicare for the boomers and still do what most of us expect government to do.

6. A substantial portion of the country's debt is held in foreign countries. Right now, these foreign investors consider U.S. Government bonds one of the safest places in the world to put their money, but they could decide at some point that Europe or China or some other place is a better bet. This would be the global equivalent of a store clerk seizing your credit card and cutting it up.

Comeback America Comeback America by David Walker

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

David Walker's book, Comeback America, is a good companion piece to Bittle and Johnson's work. Walker served as the seventh Comptroller General of the United States and was the CEO of the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) from 1998 to 2008. Though non-repentant Keynesians (like myself) may try to eschew the book as just another vitriolic partisan rant. Please be assured it is not. Instead, Walker lays out compelling evidence that shows how our huge national debt will limit our ability to tackle the challenges ahead -- providing health care for an increasingly aging population, quality education and future opportunities for our children. Writing in a clear and accessible style, Walker makes a strong case for our need to wake up and muster the courage needed to secure our economic future.

Despite the sobering conclusions presented, these books are not doomsday tales.  They provide an exploration of what we can change course before it is too late.  In this regard, the authors not only help us to understand our current fate, but they also point to some promising directions into a better, more secure future.  I would put both of these books on the list of the recommended readings list for all Americans.

Related links of interest:
  • Click on this link to see the Bill Moyers interview with the authors:  The Debt Dilemma.  (The interview begins a couple of minutes into the video segment).
  • For more information on the federal budget check out the website for the Public Agenda, "a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to strengthen our democracy's capacity to take on tough issues" 
  • For more information on David Walker's Comeback America.
  • Click on this link to see a 30 minute segment of I.O.U.S.A. -- a non-partisan documentary that explains the national debt.

Monday, February 15, 2010

Thelonious Monk...an American Original

"The piano ain't got no wrong notes!
-- Thelonious Monk

Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original by Robin Kelley

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thelonious Monk:  The Life and Times of an American Original by Robin D.G. Kelley is a meticulously researched and engaging read that seeks to put the record straight without any chaser.  Popular mythology about Monk tends to cast him as untrained, childlike and eccentric.  Drawing upon a wealth of family documents, Kelley masterfully weaves a story that counters these myths and captures Monk's genius and his humanity with compassion and profound appreciation.

As an educator, I found myself drawn to the parts of the story that brought the people and local institutions that nourished Monk's musical creativity into vivid clarity.  Very early on, Monk demonstrated a keen interest and talent in music, especially the piano.  Growing up in Harlem during the early part of the twentieth century, his talents were nurtured thanks in part to his participation in an after school boys and girls club.  At this youth center, Thelonious was able to begin his musical education and develop his piano playing.  His mother, raising three children by herself, also provided a pivotal role in the young musician's life -- acquiring a piano at home and lessons to further hone his creativity.  Later on, as an adult, his wife Nellie provided a solid foundation of love and support -- emotional, financial and business.  

However, to highlight the people who nurtured Monk's musicality is not to detract in any way from his sheer genius.   Kelley makes clear that for many years Monk did not receive the accolades he richly deserved.  His style of playing discordant notes formed the basis of what would become BeBop, popularized by two other jazz greats -- Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker. While their names are most often associated with the emergence of BeBop, Monk's compositional mastery was foundational to this new form of jazz.

While the book follows the twists and turns of the history of jazz, it is much more than your usual musical biography.  Kelley's book stands as a tribute to Monk's humanity.  Even as a budding jazz musician, he took an active role in caring for his children, while Nellie worked outside the home to provide financial support for the family.   He pursued his profound sense of social justice by supporting civil rights organizations such as the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) among others.  He courageously struggled with manic-depression, made even more acute due to alcohol and drug usage.  Clearly, there was more to the man that his mind-blowing musical virtuosity.

Reading Kelley's book deepened my appreciation for Monk and his contributions to modern jazz, the Civil Rights movement and social justice, in general.  Highly recommended for those interested in the history of jazz and the development of a true American original.

See comments by the author, Robin Kelley, on Thelonious Monk:



To see the original in action, check out this video clip of Monk performing one of his classics, Blue Monk: