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Contrary to popular belief, writing a balanced budget amendment that will actually work is far tougher than many people realize. Part of the trouble is that balancing the budget is really misstating the goal. It is better to state it as, get the budget into surplus and keep it there. There are a lot of loopholes that need to be closed or Congress will just end run around any spending restraints. I'm no James Madison, but if you'll forgive the conceit, consider this a request for inquiry and comment. I'm assuming this will be Amendment 28. It is based on the ideas presented in my book, A Blueprint for Prosperity: Market-based Alternatives to the Obama Blueprint for Change. It is available in print on Amazon or as an ebook on Smashwords.

Section 1. Spending Cap

I live in my RV, by necessity, not by choice. Well, by choice insofar as I prefer it to being on the street. By and large, I find it is not as bad as I thought it would be in many ways, except perhaps one. Even though I live in a mobile home, have a job as a home energy efficiency auditor, pay my taxes, and make every effort not to appear homeless --I go to some length to keep myself and my RV clean, well-groomed, and in good repair-- many people still tend to perceive an unwashed, drunken, panhandling homeless guy living out of a shopping cart or cardboard box. Once they make that leap, it tends to be quickly followed by everything from a potential petty thief, mental patient, drug dealer, or(the popular favorite in most residential neighborhoods) a child molester. Moreover, there is little I can do about that perception. I was a bit slow to pick up on this, but what have come to believe I'm up against is the average person's primal fear of winding up on the street. Fortunately, most people are not unbending in how they look at me. Those who take the trouble to learn a bit more about my situation quickly revise their opinion of me and my situation. Some even express appreciation for my refusal to give in to a bad situation once they hear the back story. But there are simply too many who I will never have that chance with before the police get called and I get a 2-am wake up call from a member or two of the local constabulary. This article is about dealing with those people I will not get the chance to convince otherwise.

In my ongoing attempt to prove that coming up with a sensible national economic plan does not require a PhD in economics, finance, or divination, I concluded in an earlier post that a budget system based on receipts for the immediately preceding year would be closer to the stated goal of many politicians that Congress should be required to balance their budget just as everyday Americans must do. I called this approach receipt-based budgeting. Starting with prior-year receipts is a good first step, but we need to get a few more things straight before we start using it.

One of the more frustrating things to anyone interested in understanding the US budget deficit is the way politicians insist that Washington should balance its budget every month just like the American people do, and then propose budget reforms that do nothing of the sort. The left is always either trying to tax the rich more, and spend the money on new government programs, neither of which is an option available to the American people. The right, to its credit, at least tries to come up with solutions that don't involve ever-expanding federal spending, but not one of the proposed Republican budget reforms is something normal households do to manage money.

Do you long for some common sense in economic policy whether you live in the US, the EU, the UK, China, Japan or anywhere else? Are you a world leader worthy of the title who truly wants to fix the problems in the EU, UK, and the US but just can't seem to see a way out? We could berate you for incompetence, or call for an uprising, but that, while emotionally satisfying, will not solve the problem and may well make things far worse. We could call for new government actions or programs, but government intervention, while often well-intentioned, is the biggest reason we have so many problems in the first place. Instead, in accordance with our philosophy of harming none and helping others at every opportunity, we of the Worker-capitalist Society choose to offer solutions.

If You Have the Choice of Vehicle to Live In, Get a van

Well, I have been living out of my Chevy Sprint RV, christened "Serenity," partly because I do find living in the RV to be more serene than living dependent on the generosity of friends; partly for the somewhat metaphorical "Firefly" reference. I met a guy named John at Panera Bread who lives on his boat at the local marina. He asked where I lived. I never lie about living in the RV when asked. I am not ashamed of it. It is what I need to do, for now, to get back on my feet financially. His response was, "So you're a boater on wheels." The whole Firefly thing fits nicely into that analogy.

The only problem is, the boat on wheels thing might fit a bit too well.

Well, I finally found a motor home to move into. It is a 1988 Chevy Sprint, remodeled and refurbished in 1998. I got it for $4500, including some repairs that it needed. It is a nice size, 21 feet, based on the Chevy G30 Sport Van chassis. It is a bit wide, which can make parking a challenge, but I am adjusting. There is plenty of room for one person. I am christening it, The Serenity.