Does anyone agree that the stimulus package is a very bad idea?
Thursday, February 4, 2010 10:18The stimulus package »”>stimulus package may work in theory, but in practice I think it will make our economy even worse. The stimulus package calls for $550 billion in new spending and $275 billion in tax relief. This makes no sense, so the $550 billion is going to put everyone further in debt and somehow the $275 billion is supposed to compensate for it? This makes zero sense to me and is equivalent to using a giant sledgehammer to fix a problem, when it is only going to make it worse.
TheWise: I am not a Republican nor am I a Democrat for I rather not limit my political perception. Well what you are talking about is the $275 billion that is going to be given back as tax relief to increase productions and consumptions to the American that the economy is turning around.
However, the $550 billion is not going to increase productions and consumptions to the American that the economy is turning around, all it is going to do is spend money to fix problems that probably are going to have little effect on increasing productions and consumptions.
I agree with you on the goal, but the $550 billion of the stimulus package is not the best way to go about it.
Peping, mike ingham: I am not saying we necessarily do nothing, but I think if we are going to do something, it might as well be perfect or at least near perfect. If most of the bill was used for tax relief and money being given to the American people and only a little or none of it for spending then I would not have a problem with it.
Lurch says:
February 4th, 2010 at 10:55 am
Count me in. I wonder why Congress had 12 hours to read the 1100 page bill and were rushed to pass it, yet Obama isn’t even going to sign it until tomorrow. If this is such an emergency shouldn’t he have signed it Friday evening or over the weekend?
The Wise says:
February 4th, 2010 at 11:13 am
You know someone agrees with you, just ask almost any Republican.
You have a shallow understanding of macroeconomics. In a recession like this, government spending CAN stimulate the economy, and that was Obama is trying to do. It’s not about trying to pull the government out of debt, it’s about trying to stimulate the productions and consumption of goods and creating new jobs to stave off the unemployment rate. It’s about trying to give confidence to the American that the economy is turning around.
Simply standing around while the economy collapses won’t do anything to help the situation and in circumstances like this, if it’s not helping, it’s hurting.
Bongo Bango says:
February 4th, 2010 at 12:00 pm
The Wise,
Can you tell me when at any point Keynesian economic policies of expanding government through increased spending has ever created wealth?
History has shown that expanded government reduces produc tivity and economic growth. Massive Keynesian spending hikes in the 1930s, 1960s, and 1970s all failed to increase economic growth rates.
Kimi says:
February 4th, 2010 at 12:01 pm
I agree. I believe that it may have started out as a good idea, but somewhere along the way it got to big and out of control. I have been trying to read the whole thing for myself and it is very difficult to get through. So far I have found a lot of things that got included that have no business being in there and should have been separate bills.
sublime_savvy says:
February 4th, 2010 at 12:57 pm
This “stimulus” package is terrible, and has doomed the American Dollar. NO government has ever survived it’s currency being devalued. The change Obama promised is well under way, or haven’t some of you heard, we’re socialists now. Socialism meaning nationalizing production and services, owned by the government, but run by private entities.
One thing Obama/Congress had right about stimulating the economy is that money has to be spent. What he/they got wrong was WHO should spend that money, on what it should be spent, and from where the money comes. Instead of taking a federal budget cut by reducing taxes, reducing spending on social programs, and cutting agencies within the government or waste from their budgets, he and Congress decided they know what’s best for the people’s money, instead of the people themselves. (socialist ideal)
Now today, the headlines read that Obama is appointing a panel to restructure the auto industry. They’ve already taken over the major banks, and in doing so have a double whammy taking over both finance and housing, now they’re taking over our transportation, next they’ll take over our health care requiring all health records to be electronically kept for biosurveillance (it’s on the CDC website folks). Do you really think that is for the People’s benefit??
WAKE UP PEOPLE!!! This is a takeover by power-hungry, greedy, immoral people who have no interest other than their own demented, megalomaniacal agenda to take over the country and create a one world global government.
Joe Blough says:
February 4th, 2010 at 1:46 pm
The whole thing is a sham, we’re witnessing Amerika being robbed. The banks caused this whole problem in the first place, by falsifying loan apps. then selling them to investors. Funny, how all these banks lost all that money, at the same time, huh? Poor banks, we better hurry and give them more money, since they don’t have any, anymore. Hello, if I lose all my money in Vegas, can I get a bailout? All this “plan” is going to do is, sell America to China. And, China don’t even have to worry about qualifying for a loan.
mike ingham UK says:
February 4th, 2010 at 2:34 pm
A far worse idea is doing nothing, then you would see an almost complete closure of the economy, exponential increase of crime, millions on the streets with nothing to do.
The stimulus package IS a risk, doing noting is certain to produce a World such as you have never seen before
Oscar C says:
February 4th, 2010 at 2:35 pm
Could be a bad idea, but with good intentions.
Peping says:
February 4th, 2010 at 2:44 pm
actually it’s an idea that has never been tried yet considering that this is only the second economic crisis or economic downturn (as those economist term it) in your country, believe and stick around with your president he is the hope not only USof A but also the world specially 3rd world countries like us i think he has the idea, dont you think? for all you know it will succeed and if it fails well, thats better than doing nothing at all.
steven_3199 says:
February 4th, 2010 at 3:00 pm
I believe the stimulus package is a lazy solution, when you don’t think a problem all the way through, you end up with problems
Of course i’m gonna take my money, everyone is getting it
It may not take the general public to realise that this is a bad idea, but it should take a politician to realise that this is a bad idea, that is there job isn’t it?
We are having this problem in Australia, Kevin Rudd thinks that multiple handouts are going to solve the problem, and mentions that there might of been more on the way
I am sure this isn’t just happening in the states and Australia, what we need to do here is put the money towards other things, that is a lot of money to spend on people, when they could be educated in budgeting, how to cook, things that we are gonna need to know when we have more financial situations like this, we are all gonna have crashes in the economy sooner or later, a friend said to me a couple months before this happened “The economy has to crash, that’s how it works”
Politics is not a popularity contest, it is about looking after your country, we need smarter politicians, people who know what they are doing, not people who dordle along and give out stimulus packages to solve our money problems
There is better things we need to spend our money on, not stupid hand-outs that are given to everyone
Money is like a drug, a drug that will only cover up a problem as it gets worse, we need to deal with this problem rather then cover it up, and we need to deal with it now!