A few years ago, when the economy was on the way south and gas prices were beginning to rise, everyone jumped on the "blame the President" bandwagon. Somehow, a lot of people rationalized that the President single-handedly controls the stock market and the price of crude oil. Following that rationale, fine - let's blame him. Let's bad-mouth him on the radio and in the newspaper. In fact, let's devote a month of front page stories to the awful job he is doing.

But if you hold to the thought that Mr. Bush is to blame when things go wrong, why not give him credit when things improve? The price of gas is below $2.00 a gallon; the Dow continues to climb into record territory. So where are the front page stories about the great job the President is doing? Where is the thanks that he deserves for single-handedly straightening out the economy . . . while dealing with a war, a Congressional scandal, and a mid-term election?

You may remember back in the nineties when another President was given credit for a great economy and a positive job outlook. The Dow set an all-time high during his presidency, and he received praise all over the place. And when things took a turn for the worse, I don't recall anyone blaming him.

It seems as though the political climate in the United States has a double standard. It's time that we recognize the good and the bad in everyone - don't put on blinders just because you're affiliated with a certain political party; don't hold one leader to a different standard than you hold another one to. And either get over the idea that one person single-handedly controls the price of anything, or start writing the thank-you notes . . . because if it's good enough for one President, it's good enough for the other.