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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Program provides stable homes for youth Get Up & Go: Sunday, Sept. 28 Since You Asked: Oregon Ducks were originally the Webfoots Emergency Services Volunteer squad set to do CSI: Josephine County Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Emergency Services Man arrested for selling fake crystal 'Just another drunk driver that didn't want to go to jail' Emergency Services Police investigating reports of shots fired in west Medford Politics and Elections Dotterrer-Bates Senate race goes negative? 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Man arrested for selling fake crystal ... Police investigating reports of shots fired in west Medford ... Our View: Holder leaves mixed civil rights legacy ... Man arrested for selling fake crystal ... Police investigating reports of shots fired in west Medford ... Mark L. Hopkins: What the next election should be about By Mark L. Hopkins More Content Now MailTribune.com By Mark L. Hopkins More Content Now Posted Sep. 8, 2014 @ 7:47 am By Mark L. Hopkins More Content Now Posted Sep. 8, 2014 @ 7:47 am » Social News A well-run business develops plans that take it into the future. In the formative stages of the planning process those who share the business responsibilities are asked for ideas so that everyone involved not only has an opportunity for input but, also, will know where the business is headed so they can pitch in to help. At least that is what the management textbooks at our universities tell us to do. If one wants to borrow money to start a new business and goes to the bank, the first thing the bank will request is a business plan. The business plan should include current assets, the need for the product or business service, an assessment of the marketplace and what the money is to be used for. Now, please answer the following questions. What is the energy plan of the U.S.? How do wind, pipelines, and more efficient cars fit into a plan? What is the plan to stop illegal immigration? How do the fence, enforcing employment law, and the National Guard fit into a plan? What is the plan to balance the budget? At what point will the federal deficit become the tail that wags the dog? I could ask similar questions regarding other important issues. For these three I would have to confess that I don’t know what the plans are. I would hope that our leadership in Washington, D.C., has plans for handling these important issues but, if they do, they aren’t sharing their plan with “we the people.” If a business plan is necessary before a business can borrow money shouldn’t our government, our biggest business and the ultimate borrower, be required to have a comprehensive business plan? Our government’s lack of planning has the country in debt to one funding source or another for more than $17 trillion. If our people don’t know the government’s plan to solve the debt problem, how can they become a part of making the plan successful? Today, we fight over each little happening: the pipeline, where windmills can be put, offshore drilling, etc. Having a plan would tell us where each one fits into the solution to our problems. It would also help us understand the allocation of money in the federal budget. Our lack of such planning reminds me of what French film director Nicolas Hulot called the “Titanic syndrome.” Picture a giant luxury ship steaming along at night through icebergs, with all the lights on and the band playing. Picture the results of not planning ahead, of not slowing down and being careful. The lack of a viable plan in so many areas is what the next election should be about. Dr. Mark L. Hopkins writes for More Content Now and Scripps Newspapers. He is past president of colleges and universities in four states and currently serves as executive director of a higher-education consulting service. Contact him at [email protected]. By Mark L. Hopkins More Content Now MailTribune.com By Mark L. 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