Weighing In On The Economic Stimulus Package

Hey, who doesn't want free money? The economic stimulus package passed by Congress and signed by the President sounds too good to be true. And it is said, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."

And such is the case with this stimulus package.

Those who would benefit the most - initially - would be poorer Americans. Of course, that's the noble intent of this action. As soon as they get these hot checks in their hands, they'll be headed down to the nearest Walmart Supercenter and loading their carts full of goods - made in China. I think Mike Huckabee said it the best in last week's Republican presidential debate in Florida: "We’ll probably end up borrowing this 150 billion from China and then people are going to go out and buy goods from China, so whose economy is going to be stimulated?” Uh, China (ya' think???).

People may also consider travel plans, and the folks who export their oil to us are already wringing their hands gleefully in anticipation of our rebate checks. If you don't believe me, just look at how much oil prices have increased since the stimulus package passed. This will help stimulate the economy further on the Arabian Peninsula. It will also help fund more terrorist activities.

I think Washington has sold us out. We could have used this money to repair our failing infrastructure (where latest disasters included levees in New Orleans and a bridge in Minnesota). We could have used this money toward our children's education (how many more will be left behind now?).

The United States is becoming - or has already become - a nation utterly consumed by greed. Whatever happened to American products sold and serviced by Americans? We consume products that are made in China and are serviced in India. What will happen if those lines are severed? God forbid!

Those who lived during the Great Depression and World War II (and their descendants who actually listened to their stories) know what it's like to live with just the necessities - and even those were scant. If subsequent generations were to lose their Ninetendos and iPods and Starbucks coffee, the sound of their whining could be so loud that the Earth would implode on itself. Maybe they'll just die. Hopefully they'll be able to reach deep inside and somehow survive. Perhaps with our economy going the way it is, we'll find out soon enough.

As for me and my wife, our rebate probably would not amount to much more that we normally receive as a tax refund anyway (those medical deductions actually add up for us). We probably wouldn't miss our rebate, and I doubt that our impact on the American economy would amount to much.

My employer has a really stupid rule where they charge me an additional surcharge for having my wife on my health insurance (on top of what I already pay to have her on my health insurance). This is so we can make an informed decision about our health insurance. Trust me, we do make an informed decision, and my insurance is better (at least for now). So why am I penalized for it?

Actually, I've turned the tables on my employer (at least I think so). Another thing my employer does (which is really cool) is that employees can have charitable donations deducted from their paycheck and given toward a very wide variety of organizations. We can choose one, a few, some, many, or all organizations. It's like United Way, but much wider in scope (and includes United Way as one of our choices). And my employer matches my donation, dollar for dollar. So my church conference's homeless shelter receives a donation from me which is at least the same amount as my health coverage surcharge. I'm doing something good for the community, and my company doesn't get to keep my surcharge.

So I will likely give our rebate to charity. We have an Ethiopian congregation in our church whose pastor is one of - if not the - dearest and sweetest man I have ever met. Pastor S opened an orphanage in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia several years ago, and he continues to work tirelessly on maintaining it. I think they should get my rebate - now that would be an economic stimulus.