Maybe it’s my imagination, but we seem to have gotten awfully regal in this country. That’s what came to mind when I heard about the kafuffle over our Secretary of Defense. Leon Panetta has been flying home to California most weekends — on Air Force jets — costing taxpayers $32,000 per round trip.

The Defense Department says White House guys agreed to this when they hired him. “No, we didn’t!” the White House guys cry. You can imagine that nobody wants to admit to the deal.

Panetta says he just wants to visit his ranch and wife and family. Right. Here is a suggestion, Leon. If you want the job in Washington, how about you move your family to that area? And if you don’t want to do that, then pay for your own travel. 

If you tell us you sacrifice the big bucks to take the low-paying secretary’s job, we agree. You do. So sacrifice, already. If you don’t want to sacrifice, take the big job in business and make millions. And don’t try to make us feel sorry for you for your low pay in government. You will sign book deals worth millions when you retire. And groups will pay you $30,000 to deliver glib speeches. And you already get a lot of perks that kings would envy.

Royal treatment is in vogue in Washington. As you know from reports of the Las Vegas bash by bigwigs from the General Services Administration. The top guys may go to jail for their theft from taxpayers. But do you really believe this is an isolated instance? And do you really believe this is the end of such gouging of taxpayers by top guys in government?

Seems to me that we could do with less of the royal treatment. From the president down.

A few years ago, I saw the president drive down a Manhattan street — with 37 cars and a handful of motorcycles. Yes, 37 cars. But wait. He also had helicopters whap-whapping overhead. And thousands of city cops who barricaded all the intersections, stopped all the cross-traffic for miles. Backed up tens of thousands of cars.

All for the president’s visit.

His limo-tanks were flown in, of course. Hundreds (at least) of Secret Service guys scoped out the route and building tops and manholes in advance. The other armored cars carried an army of security guys and tons of guns. When the president visits a small country, his entourage is bigger than its army. He could step out of his limo and declare we had successfully invaded and were taking over. 

A simple trip to New York City costs several million bucks. That seems outrageous to me. I know, I know, we must protect him. And he might have to launch nuclear weapons at any moment. But it seems a bit over the top. The Brits and French send their leaders overseas without all this regal stuff. And those countries have nuclear weapons at the ready, just like us.

It might be nice once in a while to fake everybody out. Tell the world the president has gone to Camp David. Meanwhile, tuck him into a beat-up taxi for his trip to some dinner. He would be safe because nobody would know about it. 

It would be good for him to experience what ordinary mortals do. (“Uhh, driver…is this what they call a traffic jam? I think I’ve read about those.”)

And it would save us millions of bucks per trip. Mind you, those New York City taxis can be pretty pricey.

From Tom…as in Morgan.   

Tom Morgan writes about financial and other subjects from his home near Oneonta, in addition to his radio shows and new TV show. For more information about him, visit his website at www.tomasinmorgan.com 

Would you take the advice of a financial advisor who told you to invest in only two or three industries? The answer is — of course not. Most individuals, corporations and institutional investors realize the value of diversity within a portfolio. Yet, as a region, we seem to ignore this principle.

The good news is that we are seeing investment and expansion take place. According to a recent report in The Central New York Business Journal [March 9, 2012 CNY Construction Projects Special Report], there are more than 60 sizable construction projects throughout the area. No doubt, this is a notable indicator of growth. 

But before jumping for joy, we need to look at the composition of this growth. Three-quarters of these projects are being built for institutions of higher learning, health-care facilities, governmental agencies, and various not-for-profit organizations. The remaining 25 percent is comprised of companies trying to generate a profit.

This is not merely a snapshot. The 2011 edition of this report revealed a virtually identical breakdown. Employment and job-growth statistics further corroborate this trend.

The fact that universities and health-care institutions are expanding should be of little surprise as “Eds and Meds” have long been seen as the shining sectors for our region. Yet, it is worth examining why these sectors are booming while so many other segments are lagging. 

Are organizations in these segments of the economy better run and more solid financially? Or perhaps, based on market demand and demographics, these are the sectors that should be growing. Still, even if these assumptions are true, other factors need to be considered.

Those of us who operate businesses in New York State realize how hostile the environment can be for conducting business. Let’s be honest, our region’s de-facto investment policy is driven by a broad range of oppressive taxes that have a chilling effect on business growth. The 75 percent of the expansion projects, as mentioned above, were mostly being built for and funded by not-for-profit institutions. Of course, the notion that organizations with lesser tax burdens are better positioned for growth is hardly a revelation.

Make no mistake, I am not criticizing these components of our economy. I believe wholeheartedly that the health-care institutions along with the universities and colleges make a positive and significant impact on the quality of life within the region. They not only bring first rate-services to the populace, but also attract highly qualified professionals, provide good-paying jobs and add to the magnetism of the community.

The risk lies, however, in having a business community within a concentrated portfolio of industries. Being too heavily weighted in a narrow range of business sectors can be a formula for disaster — think of Detroit. As with personal investments, a diversified portfolio of economic engines will best create further opportunity for growth while mitigating the risks of an economy concentrated in too few industries.

Without a measurable change in New York State’s prohibitive tax and business policies, we will continue down this path. Last spring, Governor Cuomo said that businesses were leaving the state because of real-estate taxes being too high. He responded by putting forth a cap on property taxes. 

This is not a solution. Limiting increases on taxes that are admittedly too high does not solve the problem. It is akin to having the homeowner whose house is engulfed in flames being told by the fire chief that the blaze will not get much worse. That is not enough — you have to put out the fire.

The other mistake the governor has made is the assumption that the problem comes solely from property taxes. The frosty business environment in New York stems from the total tax burden on business combined with workers’-compensation costs, funding public employee pensions at unsustainable levels, and an array of rules, regulations, and fees. 

It is time for the governor and the state legislature to recognize the need for having a nurturing environment for all types of businesses. Creating an environment that fosters job growth across many sectors will produce a well-rounded and robust economy providing job security for all in the tax base. That’s a risk we can live with.         

David H. Panasci is president of DHP Consulting, LLC in Camillus. Visit his website at www.dhpconsulting.com