Stone Soup

When I was very young (yes, yes, a long, long time ago), I loved the Captain Kangaroo Show. Bob Keeshan was the Captain, and along with Mr. Greenjeans would entertain us every morning. I didn’t realize until many years later that this show was much more than Mr. Moose getting the Captain to say the word that would make lots of ping pong balls drop. It was also educational.

Jim Carville once said that all life you needed to know about life you can learn from watching The Andy Griffith Show. That’s how I feel about Captain Kangaroo. Life lessons were learned there long before Sesame Street. Where am I going with this? Well, as I watch our reaction to the recession, I am reminded of the story that the Captain used to read every now and then called “Stone Soup”.

The story goes something like this. Three soldiers were on their way home from a war when they happened into a small village of suspicious and war weary inhabitants. They stopped and asked for food. The villagers replied that there was no food to be had. One of the soldiers suggested that they make stone soup and feed the entire town. They got a big pot, filled it with water and placed three large stones in the bottom. They proceeded to boil this, stirring it and tasting it every now and then. The townsfolk were very curious. How could you make soup from stones? The soldiers said it would be delicious and would serve the entire town. As they went along, one soldier opined that it was good, but could be great if there were only a few carrots. One of the townsfolk said that he may be able to find a few carrots. So that went in. Over the course of cooking the soup, the townsfolk responded like this with potatoes, tomatoes, and much more until there were all sorts of seasonings, vegetables, and much more in the soup. The soldiers fed the town, ate, and went on their way. As they left the town marveled at how they made soup from stones!!

I haven’t seen nor heard that story since the days of the Captain (Kangaroo, not Morgan), but think of it often in my job. It should be required reading for all elected officials.

The federal government’s use of stimulus funds is much like the stones. It requires people to feel it works and then they begin to supply the other ingredients. Consumers spend on things like cars. Businesses invest in manpower or equipment upgrades. Each of these borrows from financial institutions as people invest in themselves and the economy. Government doesn’t have enough spending power by themselves, but must inspire and lead as we rebuild our economy. Whether that causes people to start to invest depends on whether you have sold them on the idea of stone soup, and of course, whether they have a few carrots or potatoes left.