Candy counts on Valentine’s Day

Happy Valentine’s Day. It’s a day that tells it like no other. Americans will spend $12 billion on Valentine’s Day 2007. Ninety-two percent of the population will participate in one way or the other in making up that $12 billion. Thirty-six million boxes of candy will be bought and given for that one day out of 365.

If we were to take that $12 billion and spend it on the War in Iraq, we could well cover the cost of about 45 days of military action. Thus far the war has cost — give or take a billion or so — about $366 billion.

Now take a big look at the Gross National Product. The GNP for January 2007 was estimated at $13.3 trillion. One tenth of that would be about $1.3 trillion. Yet, for all charitable purposes, Americans only gave about $250 billion. Somebody is not paying the preacher like they ought!

A little more perspective: 63 percent of Americans spent something like $15 billion for pet food last year. That’s more than we spend in one day for Valentines and could take care of nearly two months of fighting in Iraq.

The truth that these figures prove is that we Americans will spend just about what we want to spend on what we want to spend. We are a people of conspicuous consumption. A modern day prophet said it best: we buy things we don’t need with money we don’t have to impress people we don’t like.

Of course I am as guilty as the next fellow. I may not spend a dime on pet food, but I do like Sgt. Bilko old re-runs from the ‘50s available on DVD. Sgt. Bilko was the conniving master sergeant who kept Fort Baxter humming (trivia: I met Col. Hall’s wife when living in southern California back in 1980; she was so flattered that I had remembered without the aid of a DVD).

Back to Valentine’s Day: the most wonderful gifts are those that are given alongside the candy, diamonds, and dinner out. And they are love and romance; affirmation and encouragement; admiration and unshakeable confidence. Without the latter, the $ gifts are not worth much to anyone. But, it’s best to do both.

After all, we are Americans. Candy counts. Dinner out speaks volumes. A diamond is still a girl’s best friend. And we men are beginning to like a diamond or two.

Happy Valentine’s Day, you crazy and wild Americans.