Shopping is on: Shoppers crowd the stores this weekend, but still cautious

It wasn't a done deal that this Black Friday weekend would be better than any of the others.

After all, the economy has been struggling for a while, and shoppers are more than a little nervous about what might be coming next.

So while lots of people headed out to the stores this weekend, they were still not ringing the registers like analysts hoped they would.

And that is not that big a surprise.

As we prepare to round out this year and to get ready for what we hope will be a stellar 2014, it is time to think seriously about what the priorities need to be in the next year.

And one of the items at the top of the next "to-do" list is to fix the economy.

Although Washington would like to spin the numbers, they are not much better.

There are still too many people who have given up looking for work and too many others who are seeing their take-home pay dwindling.

And neither of those make for a strong economy.

Increased hiring comes when businesses feel safe -- safe from unnecessary regulation, undue tax burdens and axes waiting to fall like Obamacare.

Without that security, they hoard money -- and that means they hire and reward fewer people.

There are certain truths by which businesses operate -- and that is one of the most basic.

Bottom line is, we need to talk more about the economy in 2014 -- and about how to fix it -- and fast.

Published in Editorials on December 2, 2013 11:23 AM