The nation is buzzing about the Iowa caucuses, and talk radio listeners are very engaged as they tend to be more political and more involved than the general population. Part of being a candidate is talking about problems and offering solutions. But slur campaigns and dirty politics make it seem like there's so much negativity. One commentator recently wrote that 85 percent of all Americans are happy with their own lives, yet 75 percent are unhappy with the direction our country is heading.

But it's important to remember that we as a country as far wealthier today than just a generation ago. With so much talk about income inequality among the middle class, keep in mind that we're still far more affluent in terms of health, housing, creature comforts and more. For example, there are not nearly as many fires to fight because houses are built so much safer today. Ditto for highway design, air travel and automobile travel, which are all safer than ever. We live in a golden era and don't recognize it. That doesn't mean we don't have problems. There's a saying among journalists that goes, "If it bleeds, it leads." Bad news is what makes the news -- not good news. So the news we digest tends to make us more pessimistic than we should be. Yet the average American lives 25 percent longer than in the 1940s. In this political year, remember that our country is the most successful in the history of humanity. Free enterprise lets you take risks and potentially achieve great wealth for you and your family.