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Americans rallied ’round the flag, buying bonds and donating rubber tires, pots and pans, bicycles and clothing — all to demonstrate that they were playing their part in the war effort. Some of the drives were more useful than others. Bond sales were important to finance the war, but scrap metal was of limited practical use. Still, it was the symbolism that counted. The war drives said: America was unified. Americans were willing to sacrifice. America would not be defeated. Historian Doris Kearns Goodwin said following Tuesday's terrorist attacks that the U.S. needs a new war drive to express its patriotic fervor and national resolve, but she was at a loss to suggest what form this might take. Blood drives have already become America’s way of showing compassion for the victims of these heinous attacks. Prayer vigils, too, have become common, and flags have been lowered to half-mast. But an even larger demonstration of solidarity is needed — a display of national resolve in the face of adversity that would reverberate around the world. Here’s a suggestion: As Wall Street reopens, Americans should buy stocks and bonds. Millions of Americans have banked their tax rebate checks. In addition, some $2 trillion now sits in money-market funds. Even if only a fraction of this money went into the stock market, the indexes would soar as rarely seen before. If the tens of millions of Americans who have 401(k) plans, individual retirement accounts, or brokerage accounts were to invest even $100 each, the flood of cash into our financial markets would tell the world that the United States cannot be intimidated. Corporations, too, could participate by buying back stock in their own companies, making it known that the actions were taken as a sign of enduring faith in our country. And members of senior management could follow suit, exercising options to buy stock in their companies. The world would take notice. And America itself would gain strength, confidence and hope from this sign of resilience at our time of testing. The terrorist attacks were intended to strike at our nation’s two greatest strengths: our capitalist economy and our democratic republic. The injured and the dead fell victim because of where they worked — the World Trade Center, the internationally recognized icon of the U.S. economy, and the Pentagon, the epicenter of America’s military might. It is therefore right and proper that the American people should counter last Tuesday’s dastardly deeds by supporting the very institutions that came under assault. A massive purchase of stocks and government bonds by the people of the United States, average folks just looking for a way to play a part and show their support, would be historic. It would be a tangible display of faith and trust in our economic and political way of life. It would stick a finger in the eyes of "tinhorn terrorists" who think they can frighten and cow the United States. It also would serve as a tribute to the thousands who have perished — those professionals in the World Trade Center who made our financial markets the envy of the world and those Pentagon personnel who kept our country strong. We owe it to their memory to place our confidence — and our dollars — in the institutions they served so well.
— William
P. Kucewicz is editor of GeoInvestor.com
and a former editorial board member of The Wall Street Journal |
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World War II, President Franklin Roosevelt’s advisors knew that they had
to devise a way to channel the emotions of the American people in a display
of solidarity and joint purpose. They came up with the concept of war
drives — bond drives, rubber drives, metal drives and the like.
