What is the common denominator in the following events: the Iraq and Afghanistan wars; the series of economic crises in our banks, Wall Street and housing market, which has resulted in what has come to be known as the “great recession”; and the oil spill in the Gulf?

They are all a result of catastrophic policies left over from the Bush/Cheney administration. The last two are a result of reckless deregulation. Trusting and allowing financial institutions and big oil to regulate themselves was folly, and we are now paying dearly for it.

The Obama administration has inherited these monumental crises and has had to spend the greater part of its first two years in office cleaning up the mess the Bush/Cheney administration left behind. How many more ticking time bombs are still ready to go off?

To try to anticipate and prevent future crises, I would urge the president to order each of his departments to search out and destroy policies that will eventually blow up in our faces. They could start by reviewing the plethora of wrong-headed Bush policies.

Now the tea party comes along and tries to outdo Republican irresponsibility by crying that the administration is attempting to step on the neck of BP and calling this behavior un-American. This type of nonsense is going from bad to worse.

The government’s responsibility is not to get out of the way of big business so that greed can wreck our economy and the environment. Its responsibility is to protect the public against corporate excesses by yes, regulating them. There is a proper role for government in our economic system.

Mark Gretch

Laurinburg