Clearing a puddle with a high-powered hose

The media are very clever. Stories and events are often portrayed in a way that will guide the formation of our opinions. The coverage of the unrest in the Middle East and Africa could lead you to believe that many in the West look at the rioting in the streets as unruly and barbaric. Then we continue to flatter our arrogance and say, "What they need is democracy!"

I wonder. If we, as a country, knew just how much trouble we were in, we would also be out rioting in the streets. Our collective ignorance is allowing us to be taken advantage of, especially if we knew what was at stake in our pending government shutdown.

Economically speaking, financial literacy is a resource that is as scarce as can be in America. It is not a subject of study in school; if we want the knowledge we must seek it out. If the general populace were more financially literate as a whole, our nation would not be spiraling into an economic collapse.

Let's face the harsh facts: Our government has been bankrupt for years. Instead of our elected officials righting the ship when the rocks were on the horizon, they said, “Let's put some more wind in the sails.”

This is exactly what many U.S. citizens do when they get into credit card trouble — they apply for another card, and the industry gladly grants their wishes. It seems that we would all benefit from some financial education.

We were in serious troubled waters during the government bailout of Wall Street. Spending more money faster is not the way to solve a problem caused by spending too much money. It's like trying to clear a puddle off your porch with a high-powered hose. It may look like the puddle is gone when the hose is on, but what happens when the water stops flowing?

Armstrong Williams is on Sirius/XM Power 169, 7-8 p.m. and 4-5 a.m., Monday through Friday. Become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/arightside, and follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/arightside.