Bare necessities compete for importance nowadays

“Consumer confidence tumbles,” read a headline in a recent Spokesman- Review. No, it wasn’t a sports page headline chronicling the recent gridiron exploits of the Huskies and the Cougars, but rather a statistical report representing what economists call the Consumer Confidence Index.

Now this is no ordinary, run of the mill geek report. Economists, when they put their eggheads to it, can put computer nerds to shame when it comes to creating fancy geek-speak. For example, the subcomponents of the Consumer Confidence Index are measurable categories called the Expectations Index or the Present Situation Index. Providing a numerical “grade” to the index is not quite enough for these economists. They feel the need to pontificate with statements like “subdued expectations, as opposed to eroding present-day conditions, were the major cause behind October’s decline.”

What hogwash! Economists don’t need, as they do in this case, to send out a survey to 5,000 households, compile the results and put them through an economist’s version of the thesaurus. It’s a whole lot easier than that.

I think I’ve come up with a way to save some economists from licking 5,000 stamps a month and, at the same time, simplify this whole process. I modestly call this ingenious new idea the Just Look Around, Stupid, Index.

If you want a true financial picture of an economy, just count the number of cars with their check engine light on. I own a car and a truck. On both of them, the check engine light flashes like a Christmas-ornament wannabe. Many of my friends have the same condition. Has anyone looked close at the dash of STA buses recently? Wait, unlike individuals, they recently got a bailout. Before the reality of these economic hard times hit me, I wouldn’t drive my vehicle one inch if the check engine light were on. Now, I sternly remark to my car that there’s a little subcompact in China going to the garage tonight with no oil, so quit complaining.

Another excellent gauge of an economy lies on your living room floor. When was the last time you had your rug shampooed? If it’s more than 12 months, you’re not a bad homemaker, but you do most definitely qualify as an economic pessimist.

Just like the big boys, my Just Look Around, Stupid, Index has a subcomponent as well. It’s called the $300 More Index. Quite simply, you ask respondents, “If you had $300 more dollars per month as income, how would you spend it?” Testing out this subcomponent on friends and co-workers, I have to admit I was surprised by how serious the respondents took the question and how varied were the responses.

One respondent said she would buy her medical prescriptions. This is a hard-working woman, holding down two jobs, always working more than 70 hours per week. To keep her family housed and fed, she sacrifices. That’s a pretty chilling report on our economy. Another respondent would choose a better preschool for his child. Others mentioned retirement. Paying credit card bills was a popular response. Another would treat it as mad money and save for a cherished vacation spot. Me? I’d heat my house better. My home looks like the portable heater display at Lowe’s as my son and I strategically choose where to spend our heating dollars.

The cross-section of replies made one fact readily apparent. How we would spend that $300 per month is often a reflection of our financial state. My index would ably demonstrate that when the responses predominantly run toward basic needs of food, shelter, medicine, etc., it’s time to build an economic ark.

I’m willing to make the Just Look Around, Stupid, Index public domain. Today’s politicians, who apparently read economic tea leaves, just might find real answers a novel and most helpful concept.