In Defense of the Private Economy

I have started a busines meet up group called The Art of Handcrafted Production, I also welcome anyone with an interest in the fate of the private economy. So far I am the only member. I invited the writer and economist Charles Lawton to join, after reading his article about the growth of government jobs and wages in Maine, which exceeds the growth of private economy jobs- posted here on my meet up discussion board. Mr. Lawton didn't join but I received a call from the small business administration to ask how they can help our business, which came down the pipeline from Mr. Lawton, who is apparently related to the head of the national small business administration. I am not yet sure what that actually means- but it shows that if we make the effort, we can get a response.

I have also posted a discussion about the new campaign started last week by the National Chamber of Commerce- a Campaign for the Defense of the Private Economy. The Chamber is on the same page as my own effort and will be working with grass roots organizations.

I have started this meet up because the economy is at the front of a social war. Many feel that the private economy is under attack. The government created a big stimulus program and all we got was the lousy debt and more and more taxes. Not only does the growth of government jobs outstrip the growth of Maine's private economy, but we are also one of the states with the highest number of non-profit organizations. Both government and non-profits derive their financial support from the private economy so something is seriously wrong with this picture - but it's not going to change unless the people demand it.

Please join in the private economy grass movement. If our economy has a sustained recovery, it will be because of the ingenuity within the private economy- despite the actions of our government-or at least until we can get our government to understand that it is in their interests to support the growth of the private economy.

Government socialism and the Non-profit Economy

Today it is over three years since I composed my first two blogs. My thoughts about what to write about remain consistent with my first two efforts.

In the meantime I have published a number of blog posts at Andersen Studio Days and Nights I understand the need for diplomacy in addressing controversial issues and indeed I attempt to the best of my ability to be diplomatic, but if acceptable diplomacy is to keep one's voice silent and to not question the powers that be, then we are no longer living in a democratic society. Since so much of the activities resulting from the collaboration between government and non-profit organizations borders on socialism and indeed sometimes crosses the line to Marxism, that silence for the sake of acceptance by the powers that be is not a viable alternative. On the other hand, it is probably better to publish my opinions in a venue that is not directly connected to our business and
to that end, I have decided to use this blog to publish my thoughts in a semi-anonymous manner that has fewer restraints by censorship.

The Maine Arts Commission is published on a government website. When I first started this blog in 2005, there was a creative economy list serve, which I welcomed. Maine is a fairly private state and the list serve seemed like a great opportunity to connect with Mainers living in other communities. However it soon became apparent that the list serve was "juried" by the Maine Arts Commission, sponsored by the state of Maine government. Although government censorship on freedom of speech seems fundamentally un-American, it didn't seem entirely inappropriate in the messy world of internet dialogues. However when an petition that I received from Wendy Rosen, who is a highly influential member of the professional crafts community, was rejected by the jury at The Maine Arts Commission, it became my first introduction to the cold shoulder response with which the Maine Art Commission greets the for-profit (small) business community. Since those days, I have come to privately refer to The Maine State Art Commission as a bureaucracy of elitism, which is not surprising when the governor's inspiration is Richard Florida.

The email I sent to be published on the Maine state creative economy list serve concerned the labeling of crafts made in China. These crafts were being imported into the United States with paper labels identifying that they were made in China. The paper labels could easily be removed and underneath were hand painted American names that portrayed the crafts as an American-made craft. Wendy was writing to Mainers because our Senator, Olympia Snowe, was on the relevant congressional committee, and so Wendy Rosen was requesting that we bring the matter to the attention of Senator Snowe. When I submitted the petition to The Maine Arts Commission's Creative Economy List Serve, it was rejected by the jury. On advise, I addressed a letter of complaint to the governor's wife and she contacted the Maine Arts Commission, who sent me a letter explaining that the contribution was rejected because the jury perceived it to be "spam". The obvious rationalization did not hold water, as it is common knowledge that spam is a product of mass mailing, and I sent a single email to the creative economy list serve. In that contribution I requested that Maine crafters write to Senator Snowe. If the "jury" at the Maine Arts Commission identifies such a request as "spam", it only indicates that there is something seriously wrong with the Maine Arts Commission, a belief that has been continually reinforced in the ensuing years.