Building Out of Recession

I am an accountant, and economics was included in my studies. I have lived through the Great Depression and several recessions. One of the first indications that a recession is ending takes place when construction increases. The investment multiplier effect starts the movement of money, which has been stagnant.

The Ahmanson Ranch project will require labor forces numbering in the hundreds, with materials used in the construction furthering the expansion. And every $1 spent on the project will multiply as laborers and suppliers spend their earnings.

The main purpose of environmental impact reports is to find the negative environmental effects of any project. The reports are not intended to show the positive side. The economic outlook must be given the same, or greater, consideration. In a recession, the economic side should outweigh the environment.

No amount of grousing or griping is going to stop the increase in population. Everyone who comes to California wants a job and a home. They are no different from the NIMBYs who live on Victory Boulevard. Someone had to build homes and roads for them. And someone else griped about it.

The environmentalists should be very happy with all the open space. Now is the time for them to stop talking and step aside to allow prosperity to enter the scene.

JEAN T. DEWEY, Simi Valley