Stop reading and analyzing other people's opinions about how to fix the economy, and start sharing your own.  It could net you some money.  The Hamilton Project--a Brookings Institution initiative--is going to award $25,000 in prize money for the top proposals to fix what ails the U.S. economy:

The Hamilton Project, an economic policy initiative at the Brookings Institution, has launched a prize competition to identify new and innovative thinking about policies to create jobs in the United States and enhance productivity. In the spirit of the America COMPETES Act that was recently reauthorized by Congress, the Project believes that prizes are a valuable tool for spurring innovation and finding solutions for some of our nation’s most pressing challenges.

The competition is open to academic, business and policy professionals who can demonstrate an original policy solution for increasing employment and productivity within two years of its implementation. The winning proposals will be evidence-based and also take into account the economic reality of federal and state budget constraints. They should also identify likely political constraints.

The Hamilton Project will award $25,000 in prizes, with the winner of the 2011 competition receiving $15,000 and the runners-up sharing the remaining $10,000. In addition to the cash prizes, the winning proposal will be featured on The Hamilton Project website and the author may be invited to turn that proposal into a formal discussion paper issued by the Project.

Come to think of it, if you can fix the economy, your idea is worth a fair bit more than $15,000.  But maybe the exposure is worth it. Or maybe you'll be appointed Economy Czar and you can order Timothy Geithner and Austan Goolsbee around.

More information here.