The Time is NOW

"The value of liberty was thus enhanced in our estimation bythe difficulty of its attainment, and the worth of charactersappreciated by the trial of adversity." --George Washington

There have been several people, from politicians to pundits, that have opined about how to--or whether to--rebuild the city of New Orleans.

Right here and now, I will take a stand:

REBUILD THE CITY.





In the wake of a natural disaster of epic proportions, we also now have an opportunity of epic proportions.

Not since the era of the Great Depression have we had an opportunity to reshape the landscape of the American Future.

In much the same way that the New Deal changed American society, President Bush has the opportunity to changethe face of America and establish a true Ownership Society.

Now is not the time for caterwauling, arguing, hate speech, race baiting, or class envy.

Now is the time for action.

Now is the time for the Best and the Brightest of America's private sector to step forward with new ideasto meet and overcome the new challenges that are before us.

One of the lessons we have learned in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina is that the way that the city of New Orleanswas planned, laid-out and build was a prescription and invitation to disaster.

There are organizations in America RIGHT NOW that are capable of banding together plan, re-designand commit resources to rebuilding one of America's best cities.(http://www.greatrivereng.com/) (http://www.asce.org/)

History shows us the power of great minds backed by great efforts that can even change the courseof rivers (www.chipublib.org/004chicago/timeline/riverflow.html).

If the American Spirit was strong enough to reverse the flow of the Chicago River A CENTURY AGO, just imaginewhat that same Spirit could do today with the resources at our disposal.

Re-designing and implementing a plan to rebuild New Orleans will put multiple thousands of people back to work.

Highway projects across the coutry can now be fully staffed, putting even more displaced New Orleanians to work.(http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=highway+construction)

The time has come to stop playing political football with America's energy future.

Beginning the road to America's energy independence is imperative.

The Alaska National Wildlife Refuge must be opened to provide America with not just a fresh supply of oil,but also jobs that will continue to boost our economy and bolster America's pre-eminence among the nations.

(link to President Bush's comments: http://www.anwr.com/archives/senate_supports_drilling_in_alaskan_refuge.html)

Even the housing industry can contribute to our immediate future by providing housing and jobs for Katrina survivors (www.nahb.org/) (http://katrinahousing.org/).

America, YOU CAN DO THIS!

THIS IS THE AMERICAN CENTURY.

STAND UP, BE COUNTED, AND PROVE TO THE WORLD WHO WE REALLY ARE.