In his first address to a joint session of Congress, President Barack Obama declared that he was going “to speak frankly and directly.”
That’s what I want to do as well. I want to speak frankly and directly to the many people who have written to me complaining that they aren’t directly benefiting from the federal government’s efforts to resuscitate our gasping economy.
The sniveling sentiments of these people come down to one question:
“What about me?”
“How come only those who spend irresponsibly get bailed out?” a reader asked. “As a person who thinks before he spends, I have a lot to be frustrated about these days.”
Another reader from Indiana wrote: “Frankly, I’m infuriated. I don’t make a ton of money, but I live within my means. I purchased my home eight years ago and just paid my mortgage off this past November. It’s extremely frustrating to see us bailing out people who made foolish decisions while many others meet the obligations they agreed to.”
I’m one of the biggest proponents of personal responsibility. I preach it in this column, in my home, in the community, at my church and to anyone who will stand still long enough for me to rant about the need for people to take responsibility for their own actions.
We know that a lot — although not all — of the people in trouble in this economy made bad choices that ended up costing them their homes. A lot of people didn’t save when times were good. A lot of people didn’t do a lot of things they should have done that would have allowed them to better withstand this wretched downturn.
“We have lived through an era where, too often, short-term gains were prized over long-term prosperity,” Obama said.
I understand the frustration of the people who did the right thing.
They saved. They scrimped. They crunched the numbers and bought homes they could afford long-term.
I understand their need to have someone pat them on the back.
So consider this your back-pat.
But I’m getting increasingly weary of people carping that they aren’t getting a piece of the billions in debt the federal government is amassing to try and dam up this economic mudslide.
These people are suffering from what I call the “WAM Syndrome” or “What About Me?” disease.
My children suffer from WAM. I see them looking as I pour juice or cut a piece of pie. They watch closely to see if their siblings get more. If I give one child a little extra of something, the other two pout and whimper, “What about me?”
But I expect this from children. They often don’t understand that sometimes one person — whether he or she deserves it or not — will get more. They can’t comprehend that life isn’t fair.
Am I frustrated that my investment accounts are significantly down?
You better believe I am.
Am I upset that my home value has dropped? You betcha.
However, why are you grousing that you aren’t getting money or a certain tax break if you don’t truly need the help?
If a family is getting a break from having to pay income tax on forgiven mortgage debt, I’m not envious. That tax break means they’ve most likely lost a home.
Several readers have written droning on that they can’t take advantage of the new $8,000 first-time homebuyer’s credit. This is an improvement on a $7,500 tax credit that is really a 15-year interest-free loan.
Margaret, a first-time homebuyer from Massachusetts, said she was outraged that some people will benefit from the $8,000 tax credit, which doesn’t have to be paid back.
“I am a single woman who has worked long and hard to finally purchase a home,” she wrote. “I purchased a home on July 30, 2008, and await my $7,500 interest-free loan. I was thrilled and grateful that this was offered to me.”
After learning about the better tax break, Margaret is no longer grateful.
“I am totally disgusted. I would like justification and an answer to how this administration can justify doing for some and not for all,” she wrote. “If you do for one, you must do for all. After all, this is America.”
Let’s count Margaret’s blessings.
She has a job. She was able to buy a home without the tax break. She’s still getting $7,500 interest-free.
If you’re susceptible to WAM Syndrome, the cure is to be thankful for what you have and to have compassion for those who are hurting. Think of all the personal agony or broken marriages or stress that accompanies the threat of foreclosure.
Obama called on us all to make the concerns of others our cause.
“If you haven’t been personally affected by this recession, you probably know someone who has — a friend, a neighbor, a member of your family,” Obama said during his speech.
OK, so you’re not getting bailed out. But the reward for doing right when others didn’t is that you’re living better than they are. So stop whining.
Washington Post Writers Group
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