Maybe someone needs to buy the 2008 Democratic presidential hopefuls an Apple iPod.

Perhaps then they can listen to an audio podcast of what’s been happening to Apple’s earnings (from all those iPod sales) and the countless other “surprises” lately in the financial markets.

The stock market has surged to new highs this week. Business seems to be booming in many financial sectors and investors are steadily pouring cash into further business developments.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, an index measuring the U.S. stock market’s performance, hit a record high this week.

Yet, despite signs the stock market is strong, Democratic presidential hopefuls think they need to intervene. If the economy is good now, they say, wait until we eliminate some of the Bush tax cuts.

Something about their plan just doesn’t seem wise.

Obviously, the tax cuts have begun to work. The money freed by the cuts has begun to be reinvested, which was the point in the tax cuts in the first place.

The Democrats argue that they merely want to stop the wealthy from getting more so.

But if we want the economy to grow and jobs to be created, someone has to make some money in the process. That’s not wrong or dirty. It’s part of American capitalism.

Turning the national economy is a bit like trying to turn a huge barge in the middle of the Mississippi River. It isn’t as easy as it might look, and you can’t just turn it on a dime. Both take time.

But, more important, steering in the wrong direction can quickly get you into trouble. Democrats would be wise to wake up, listen to the music — iPod or otherwise — and leave the tax cuts unchanged.