Many agree that right now, the economy and the government that controls it are a mess. What economic and fiscal policies would you propose if you were running for office or advising government officials?

Mine:

1. Eliminate Corporate Income Tax: Just get rid of it.

2. Stop taxing the states: The Federal government gives a lot of money in the form of grants to states. Meanwhile, it taxes the income of state workers. I would propose the government stop giving out grants to states for arbitrary reasons and instead only give back to the states what it collects from state workers. In the long term, this helps states fund pension promises they've made or allows them to make the cuts they desperately need to make.

3. Cut entitlements: Another no brainer. Giving people the chance to privately invest and save their money instead of taking it in order to fund social security will also provide more opportunity for investment and growth. If people don't want the perceived risk of markets, they can always invest in Treasury bonds, and they'll still get a higher return than if they would with Social Security.

4. Freeze regulation: Regulation should never grow during a recession. Regulation ultimately should fall under the jurisdiction of the states, but the most immediate task for the government is to freeze regulation and prevent the uncertainty.

5. Create new opportunities for investment: The US is the only post industrial nation that prohibits industrialized use of hemp. Ending prohibition and the drug wars at the federal level should create opportunities for growth. If the US was in the business of industrialized hemp, we'd do it better than any of the other nations that currently allow its production.