Well, if you were the federal government, you would give people around $300 a pop and hope everyone runs out and spends the money to stimulate the economy. And let’s say all goes as planned and we do run out and buy new Wiis, iPhones and handbags. Most consumer goods are produced overseas, so a huge chunk of this money is going to another economy – probably one in Asia . And considering we have a budget deficit, the money to pay for these items (in the form of a stimulus check) probably comes from Asia, as well . So interest payments on the money to buy foreign goods is going back to a foreign country. I personally fail to be stimulated by this stimulus package.
If that $145 billion were mine, and in a way it is, I would want it to work a little harder. I can’t help but think it would stimulate the economy so much more if we invested in, well, our economy – instead of someone else’s. Can you imagine what $145 billion could do for, say, a crumbling infrastructure? In addition to repairing failing sewer systems and streets we could create jobs that put an ongoing stream of revenue into the economy. Or we could invest in green technologies, reducing some of our dependence on foreign oil (another import taking money out of our economy) and again, create more jobs along the way. Maybe we could even invent some green technologies that we could sell to other countries, actually creating an export . So then maybe we could pull some of that money back from overseas to pay off the interest on all that money we’re borrowing.
What will you do with your stimulus check? What do you think would be the best way to stimulate the economy?
