“Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.”

Sound familiar? Older generations of Americans will vividly recall when John F. Kennedy used this call to action to inspire Americans to do their part, before the government was reduced to the deus ex machina of the business world, writing blank checks to captains of industry. Instead of asking the government to bail out failure, Americans should be asking what they can sacrifice personally to assure future success.

The incredible amount of money America has budgeted for the military during the war is one of the reasons our currency remains so vulnerable to inflation. In this way, the war and the American economy are closely related. In recent decades, Americans have enjoyed a sense of assumed prosperity. If they wanted something, they could buy it. But exercising restraint during this economic crisis may be a wiser course of action. By willingly making sacrifices and using money effectively, America may be able to cushion the full blow of the recession. Such frugality will be critical because, if current trends continue, the economy will get worse before it gets better.

In the past eight years, instead of calling on Americans to make sacrifices on behalf of the war effort, President George W. Bush cut taxes and invited Americans to indulge themselves. Bush resurrected Reaganomics, cutting taxes for the rich and championing the very ideas that his father condemned over a decade earlier while running for president. Looking back, these antiquated notions may have seemed like a good idea at the time, but today it is very clear this economic crutch has become the crucial yet ill-fitting lynch pin of our economy.

With our economic health declining more each day, Americans have already been forced to cut back on spending. A Wachovia article from late 2007 that reported 52 percent of Americans were saving inadequately seems ominously prophetic now. Many Americans are currently wishing they lived within their means and saved instead of letting extra cash burn a hole in their pockets. Although hindsight is 20/20, Americans may find living a far more frugal lifestyle is easier than they think. Simply taking a portion of savings out of each paycheck will quickly add up and willingly making sacrifices before it is necessary will help protect personal finances from ruin.

According to the Wisconsin State Journal, a select few Wisconsin lawmakers have rejected a recent pay raise while several others indicated they would be donating theirs to charity. The Journal also noted if each lawmaker rejected the pay raise, it would restore $660,000 over the next two years to a projected budget deficit of $5.4 billion. Although the amounts may seem insignificant on the state level, the gesture has great symbolic importance. By refusing pay raises, these lawmakers have set an example for their peers, as well as those they govern, that they are willing to make personal sacrifices for the greater good.

Since America is currently plagued by personal and federal debt, instead of superfluous raises, a wiser course of action may be considering whether that money could be put to better use elsewhere in the community.

For the current economic situation, the key will be to strike a balance between conventional wisdom of pure frugality and the American stereotype of lavish excess. Money needs to keep sustaining the economy, but saving money and energy wherever possible will also provide tangible financial benefits. If Americans follow the example set forth by Wisconsin lawmakers, they will emerge a stronger people, having redefined their priorities for the better and just maybe realizing once and for all that money is not the key to happiness.

Casey Skeens ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in French.