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The scariest thing about the economic mess in the United States is the remarkable speed at which everything unravelled.

One moment everything seemed hunky-dory, and the next -- some of the greatest financial icons were a pile of rubble.

Could the same kind of rapid collapse happen here?

One sure lesson to be drawn from the nightmare on Wall Street is that we probably don't have a clue.

If it happened here - whether by businesses collapsing or simply packing up and moving somewhere they found more attractive - it could be quick, devastating, and unexpected by almost everybody.

This much I do know: The Bermuda Government can't be writing any cheques for a $700 billion bailout.

That is why Bermuda needs to make sure it does everything it can do - and often does not do - to reduce the odds of catastrophe and lessen the impact if catastrophe happens anyway.

Bermuda needs to have its financial affairs in order before things go wrong.

It needs to do better at spending its money without waste. It needs to increase competitive bidding for government contracts to make sure the country gets the best deal. It needs to take the Auditor General's reports seriously, and make sure its books are clean and that all money is accounted for.

Bermuda needs friends in high places. Bermuda has been doing better in the last few years at establishing contacts in the U.S. The anti-Bermuda ads in the U.S. presidential campaign are a reminder that we're going to need a huge supply of goodwill and understanding if things go wrong.

Clean reputation

Bermuda needs a good, clean reputation. Ethical concerns need to be dealt with squarely and openly. Corruption (including favouritism and cronyism in government) will be even more tempting in difficult economic times - and more of a turn-off for those who seek to do business with us.

Bermuda needs to be on good, cooperative terms with international business it depends on. It will be too late, in a time of economic crisis, to stop the pointless hostilities that drive international business crazy but that they tolerate, as long as the money keeps rolling in.

Bermuda's leaders need to develop the habit of working with others. Our long history of demonizing political opponents will turn against us in a crisis, when the country needs to work together. We need to listen to each other more, even when we have different points of view.

Bermuda needs to get its public education system on its feet. We are working on it now, to be sure. But the U.S. economic crisis should be a reminder of how urgent it is for Bermuda to be as ready as it can be to meet unexpected challenges. We won't have the money for education if the economy tanks.

It is common, in Bermuda, for the government of the day to dismiss concerns of any impending crisis as fear-mongering. But it's not. It's common sense to get your house in order - to be ready for the kinds of problems we see happening around us.

One day it will happen

We might not now understand what the crisis will be, or when it will happen, but one day it will.

Much has been made in the U.S. of how little people understood the details or consequences of the financial industry's huge dealings in convoluted inventions like credit default swaps.

But imagine how much less ordinary people - not to mention journalists, Members of Parliament and even Cabinet Ministers - understand about what goes on in Bermuda's international insurance companies?

It's not like planting onions, catching fish or welcoming cruise ship passengers. For the most part, we don't even know how to tell if it's doing well or badly.

Indeed, the problems on Wall Street are a reminder that, in the financial industry, perception can be just as deadly as reality. Confidence can keep an economy on its feet. Everything holds together as long as people believe it is holding together: The minute things seem to be unravelling, everybody starts bailing out.

So we don't know what problems may befall us here in Bermuda.

Whatever problems may befall us, though will be easier to handle if we - and the rest of the world - have confidence that we have our country running as well as it can be.

What do you think? E-mail feedback to editor Tony McWilliam: [email protected][[In-content Ad]]

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