America's Two Problems (And Two Opportunities for Entrepreneurs)

In my opinion, America has been focusing too externally the past seven years instead of internally. Don't get me wrong, we do need to be on the lookout for those crazies that want America wiped off the face of the earth. But while we're looking out the door, the inside of our house is on fire.

I write about this, not because I am planning to throw my hat in the upcoming primary, but rather I see two issues specifically as problems that can be solved by entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs always solve problems better than politicians anyway.

Once again, these are just my opinions. So you know they must be right. Here are the two issues that I think entrepreneurs can improve:

Eating Habits
Our eating habits have gone down the tube. Most young Americans rarely cook meals from scratch on a daily, weekly or sometimes even monthly basis. Fast food has become a substitute for fruit and vegetables. Obesity levels are at an all time high. More than 1/3 of our population is now classified as obese. Not good. As a society, we're not eating the right foods and over-eating the wrong foods. Welcome to the world of heart disease and diabetes to name a few of the consequences of being over weight.

The time is ripe for an entrepreneur to develop education programs that teach kids about healthy eating and cooking. One of the most satisfying things to do is to cook a meal from scratch and enjoy it with family and friends. If there were two of me, I would get into this business immediately.

Money Management
The average credit card debt of today's American family is more than $12,000. Not good. What ever happened to that good ol' saying "Live beneath your means." 50 years ago, the average American relied very little on debt to finance their life (besides having a mortgage for their house-which used to be a safe investment!). Today, if we pulled every credit card away from every American, our economy would collapse. So this means that our economy is completely dependent on consumers living beyond their means. Scary!

There is some good education work being done in this area. U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge John C. Ninfo, II, has started a fantastic program called the Credit Abuse Resistance Education program - http://www.careprogram.us/. He is a full time Judge and does not make money doing this.

Once again, I think entrepreneurs need to come to the rescue and get our country back on track financially.

There are certainly many more problems with America - crime, drugs, erosion of family and more. But I see these two items above as items that can be changed dramatically with some good entrepreneurial passion. And solving these two problems may stop other problems too…

So, any entrepreneur reading this and wants to get something going, let me know how I can help!