by Richard Mahler
It was Shakespeare’s Juliet who’d ask "What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet", not Plato, Smith and Marx would’ve thought otherwise. For in nature a rose is a rose, a serpent a serpent, but in politics things can be quite the other way around!
Governments of the world are on a spending spree and it will be Christmas every day of the next three years according to the Obama administration.
This is supposed to be the most serious economic downturn the country has faced since the Great Depression. So the administration and Congress conjure up a supposed stimulus package with huge numbers – $819 billion in the House version – and sure to be increased when it reaches the Senate. The trouble is, the bill offers very little that would actually stimulate the economy.
Beyond the fact that much of the so-called infrastructure spending included in the package is pork, pure and simple, the Congressional Budget Office estimates that less than half of the infrastructure money will be used before the end of fiscal 2010, when many economists project that the recession will be over no matter what the government does or doesn't do.
Similarly, money in the bill allocated to education, health care and "alternative" energy will take time to put to work, perhaps as late as 2012.
The larger problem, of course, is that government spending, even spending that pushes money into peoples' hands quickly, is unlikely to be the key to ending the recession. Christina Romer, the UC Berkeley professor chosen by President Barack Obama to head the Council of Economic Advisers, studied how recessions have ended in the past 50 years. The study concluded that "monetary policy alone [the Fed manipulating interest rates and money supply]is a sufficiently powerful and flexible tool to end recessions." On the other hand, "Discretionary fiscal policies [i.e., government spending], in contrast, does not appear to have had an important role in generating recoveries."
It appears this bill, while sold as economic stimulus, has been transformed into a massive and perhaps permanent increase in federal spending that includes everything that has been on the wish lists of Democrats and special interests for years. One hates to be reminded, yet again, that members of Congress simply love to spend our money, and with a Democratic president riding a wave of personal popularity and approval, they have an unprecedented chance to do so in a big way. And if the recession begins to end in a year, as many predict, you can be sure that they'll take credit for it.
It would seem that the "stimulus" is only making up for lost time and ground during the Bush years for liberal policies. Obama seems to be "striking while the iron is hot", pushing through these policies while his approval rating is floating at 70 percent.
New cars for government officials, billions for NASA and even Global warming "scientists" can expect up to 10 billion in research funding from the US government. How does this stimulate the economy? Only the Messiah knows for sure.
Government Jobs only perpetuates the cycle we are in. We don’t need more government jobs and intrusion, we need private sector jobs and expansion of consumership. The reason that the private sector has failed is not because of bad management or practices, it’s because people are not spending as much as they used to.
For many, this is because they lost their private sector jobs because of the same reason. Making the US public dependent on the US government in every aspect of their life does not motivate individuals to get off the government cheese.
House Republican Leader John Boehner issued a statement over the weekend noting that the stimulus bill wending its way through Congress provides $4.19 billion for "neighborhood stabilization activities."
Hm! That doesn't sound like the kind of thing that might help a country in times of trouble.
He said the money was previously limited to state and local governments, but that Democrat’s now want "part of it to be available to non-profit entities." That means groups like ACORN would be eligible for a portion of the funds.
So if I understand Boehner correctly, Barack Obama's plan will involve writing a $4.19 billion check directly to ACORN, memo line: "Have fun committing voter fraud, thanks for all the votes, loving it here in Washington! Wish you were here! xoxo BO."
It is becoming ever more clear that the Obama "stimulus" package is anything but. A quick review reveals an anti-business, pro-welfare abomination designed to reward special interest groups and promote welfare.
Why won’t someone just walk up to Democratic leaders, those who are essentially creating debt my great great grandchildren will have to pay off, and simply say,
"Stimulate This!"