Classic Dickens tale would be different today

By Gregory M. Drahuschak
FOR THE TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, December 24, 2006


Charles Dickens' famous character Ebenezer Scrooge may have had some character flaws, but he was the quintessential financier of his day. It would be interesting, however, to consider how Dickens would pen a modern-day version of "A Christmas Carol."
Dickens' popular, but not very profitable, 1843 book offered readers a gripping tale that beyond its captivating mix of terror and holiday-inspired emotion was a well-crafted allegory offering a stinging assessment of the economic and political structure of his day.

Through Scrooge, the book's main character, Dickens led more discerning readers to question England's social structure. Scrooge's miserly, penny-pinching style and his attitudes toward the plight of the masses symbolized a two-tier society of the very rich and those living in abject poverty.

Even at the lowest economic strata today, life is not the miserable existence it was in 1843. For the average person, educational and economic opportunities largely were nonexistent two centuries ago. They obviously are much more abundant today.

There, however, are signs today that the gap between the haves and have-nots is widening. Headline-getting corporate pay packages contrast sharply with the dwindling U.S. manufacturing payrolls. Education is the path to existing lower economic levels, but as the price of higher education increases, the number of people able to afford it shrinks. Education today clearly is more available to large numbers of people than it was in 1843, but as all five of futurist Alvin Toffler's trend-charting books point out, unless trends change abruptly, the U.S. is not far away from a two-tier social structure based on education and the resulting economic stratification it produces.

Scrooge did have a few positive traits. He had a good handle on debt and excessive spending. He liked neither. Chances are, he would not feel at ease in Congress.

Dickens today certainly would not lack for topics for the ghosts to help tell his tale.

The ghost of Christmas past would focus on vibrant textile, steel and auto businesses employing millions of holiday-happy workers reveling in the security of their perceived lifelong jobs, no Sarbanes-Oxley, affordable health care costs and less overseas competition.

The ghost of Christmas present would not be all that bad either with the lowest unemployment rate in decades and a stock market and economy that thrived despite the shock from 9/11.

A 2006 ghost of Christmas future, however, might not show the lead character's name on a tombstone, but it could have the name of another traditionally America business etched into stone if we do not change our ways.

Scrooge had Jacob Marley to arrange for him to see the past, present and future correctly. But who today could arrange for a modern Scrooge to see the errors of the past and make changes to assure a more prosperous future without dire social costs?

Could the new Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulsen best fit Marley's role? Or would Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke be better?

Finding a Bob Cratchit and his Tiny Tim probably would not be difficult these days. Anyone seeking an increase in the minimum wage might be suitable.

But the tough job would be finding a good 2006 Scrooge. The problem is not locating someone to fill the role of the miserly Scrooge but rather someone who would be able to match Scrooge's character transformation and then be able to do something with it.

Your political persuasion may bias your view of who would make the best modern-day Scrooge. But in the end, it might not matter.

The diversity of the U.S. economy has allowed it to overcome even the most severe economic slumps. Should a 2007 Scrooge surface, undoubtedly any number of Marleys will rise to the occasion to help him see the light.

Best wishes for a great holiday season.