STARKVILLE — Developing a concrete solution to lowering the United States’ mounting debt rests in the hands of two political parties that hit an impasse while trying to pass legislation. Americans are bemused by the lack of action while trying to make sense of the country’s nearly $15 trillion of debt.
At 6:00 tonight, area residents can get an idea of how grassroots ideas and methods of compromise can influence national policy makers in the National Issues Forum on National Debt at the Colvard Student Union Ballroom at Mississippi State University.
“A Nation in Debt: How Can We Pay the Bills?” will pool a diverse group of panelists from MSU and the Starkville area to develop policy suggestions for the Kettering Foundation, a non-partisan research group that’s hosted similar debt forums across the country.
Free and open to the public, the forum is an observation-only session. Additionally, the panelists will only discuss debt solutions on a national scale.
“Though this format isn’t a town hall meeting or debate, the whole notion is that citizens can sit down, deliberate and find common ground,” said William “Brother” Rogers, associate director of the Stennis Center For Public Service. “Engage in dialogue, understand others have an equal part. We have a good mix of liberal Democrats and Tea Party members, but this forum will not include politicians.”
Panelists will begin with a discussion guide and must consider three options before opening discussion: Agree to make sacrifices now; strengthen checks and balances, or invest in growth first.
Panelists will then consider the pros and cons and potential trade-offs for each approach they develop to solve the broad debt issues.
Rogers said the only way to gauge the productivity of the session is to monitor how the participants interact with each other to find common ground.
The forum will be moderated by the Stennis Institute’s Phil Hardwick.
Rogers said there was no set criteria while selecting panelists, only a goal to assemble the most diverse group possible.
Nineteen panelists are slated to participate, including Starkville Tea Party member Gary Chesser, Ernie George of Raymond James Financial, retired professor and Starkville Planning and Zoning Commission member Dora Herring and agriculture researcher Gary Windham, among others.
“The more people are alike, the less interesting they are,” Rogers said. “More ideas will be generated in this format.”
The forum is sponsored locally by Mississippi State University Libraries, the Stennis Institute of Government and the Stennis Center for Public Service.
The Kettering Foundation will package the results of the Starkville forum with others held nationally and present them to federal representatives in Washington, D.C. in the spring.
“We believe it is both important and appropriate for Mississippians to have a strong voice in this significant national project,” said MSU Dean of Libraries Frances Coleman. “We envision this as an environment that will nurture civil and reasoned discourse.”
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