Some mornings it’s hard to get up.
Lately it’s gotten harder for a lot of people not just to get up, but to keep up.
Keep up with the latest prognostications from the talking heads on TV, keep up with accounts payable and with the ever-increasing state budget deficit.
But get up we do because we have chosen to be leaders by choosing to be business owners and managers for the thousands of other people in our community who need to be able to get up, go to their jobs and keep their children fed.
The paralysis by analysis that has been pushed on us by the national media must not be allowed to control our future. Main Street will be OK. Vancouver’s Main Street is a prime example – it’s a two-way street again.
We must return to fundamental economics, not an economy driven by Wall Street MBAs who evidently needed more excitement than the gambling choices in Las Vegas could provide.
Let’s focus on the real economy, our economy – the one we have built, managed and care about.
Be thankful that to a large extent our community has been spared the wild economic swings of overheated real estate markets and disappearing factory jobs.
Let us be thankful for the jobs – 93 percent of people in Clark County are still working.
Let us be thankful for our quality of life and remember it is the businesses here, both large and small, that are the driving force behind making this one of the best places in the entire country to live.
In our front-page story examining the holiday retail market, Lynda Elstead, owner of Vancouver Gift and Wine Cellar, said her holiday sales have been right on target. But that target isn’t growth – it’s holding steady and she’s grateful for it.
So business owners and managers, continue to get up every morning and do what you do. Lead our community to a brighter future.
You have our thanks and that of the rest of our community.
