"Yes, $400 billion to prevent sexually transmitted diseases will save your job."
So says David Harsanyi, in his column today in the Denver Post:
The "stimulus" bill is all about payback to Obama's supporters and to a lesser degree, about fixing the economy. I am just hoping that the Senate Republicans are as savvy as those in the House about voting against the bill. They have nothing to gain and everything to lose if they do. If the stimulus works (I am dubious about this), then the Dems will get the credit. If the bill fails, those Republicans who signed on will be blamed, so what's the point?
Yes, $400 billion to prevent sexually transmitted diseases will save your job. A $34 million remodeling of the Department of Commerce and $150 million for honey bee insurance and hundreds of billions in new government growth will create economic growth faster than a similar-sized business or payroll tax cut, you are led to believe.
The "stimulus" bill is all about payback to Obama's supporters and to a lesser degree, about fixing the economy. I am just hoping that the Senate Republicans are as savvy as those in the House about voting against the bill. They have nothing to gain and everything to lose if they do. If the stimulus works (I am dubious about this), then the Dems will get the credit. If the bill fails, those Republicans who signed on will be blamed, so what's the point?
posted by Helen at 8:25 AM
40 Comments:
Given the choice, I'd rather spend the stimulus money to prevent STDs then hand it to banks to distribute as bonus money or hand it to the military to fund another war. The Republicans don't need to sign the bill for it to pass, they can do whatever they want.
The republican message in not voting is one of impotence. They are stating for the record that their votes do not matter.
When Clinton demanded a few billion for a stimulus package in his first 100 days, the republican controlled congress said "no". The economy did just fine without it, despite the dire warnings otherwise.
Hey cham, preventing STDs is already free. The choice is not your favorite waste or mine. They can also chose to NOT spend anything.
Roci:
The government spends money in all sorts of ways of which I disagree. That stimulus package is going to happen, neither you nor I can prevent it. The train has left the station.
Roci wrote: "They are stating for the record that their votes do not matter."
I agree with you in a way. They are stating for the record that their votes had nothing to do with this cesspool of corruption labled a stimulus package.
Before you can say "I told you so" you have to say it in the first place. This is the Republicans saying "this won't work." They will say "We told you so" in the next elections.
Trey
I agree. But the fact that govt wastes money on things you don't like should not be used as an excuse to support waste on things you do like (or things you don't dislike as much as others).
Trey,
Too bad they couldn't stick to their convictions when it mattered. This reminds me of lawmakers who would take turns voting on unpopular things depending on who was up for election that year in contested districts.
Mean while, in southern Ohio and northern Kentucky, we're freezing out butts off. I've had no power since 7:45 AM Tuesday morning.
What's Obama doing? Making jokes about schools closing and turning up the thermostat in the Oval office.
How out of touch can this guy be? FEMA's finally sending some generators to Ft. Campbell, KY. Wait, that's 300 miles away from us.
Tuesday and part of Wednesday we had a level 3 snow emergency which means if we're on the roads we can be arrested. A friend of mine was stopped because his license plate was obscured by snow.
Give me a break! If this is how the Obama administration handles natural disasters, you better be prepared!! Of course, most of us are just a bunch of white yahoos who voted for McCain, so who cares.
I wonder what people said when someone came up with the bright idea for the government to fund scratching the likenesses of 4 dead presidents into the side of a mountain.
DADvocate,
Sorry to hear you don't have power. Do you have a backup generator?
No generator. I have a kerosene heater which I use to keep the house warm enough to prevent the pipes from freezing. But, I've spent the night at a friend's who has power because of the fumes.
My comment is somewhat tongue in cheek but I've never had a power outage of more than 8 hours before. And, I have to wonder what some would be saying about this if Bush was still in office. There's been two deaths I've heard of due to CO poisoning because of people using kerosene and propane heaters.
Cham wrote:
"I'd rather spend the stimulus money to prevent STDs then hand it to banks to distribute as bonus money or hand it to the military to fund another war."
Putting aside the economic ignorance of Keynesian stimulus and dubious morality of taxpayer-confiscated State patronage to various economic activities based on their political popularity, stimulus is stimulus. Who cares where it goes? It all 'stimulates' economic growth, right?
Wait, strike that. This stimulus is little more than political graft aimed at rewarding Democrat constituencies. In that case, I guess it is quite important then where the stimulus goes.
Oh, and as far as preventing STDs, the solution is pretty easy. Get married and only have sex with your husband/wife. Everyone else, keep your fly zipped/skirt down/drawers on. Ta da! Done.
Do I get the $400M?
The stimulus package IS and STD.
The article would've been better if the author hadn't mixed up million and billion twice. The STD portion is $400 million, not $400 billion. That's still too much but the article is off by a factor of 1000. It later talks about a $700 million stimulus when it's actually $700 billion. Again, the error is a factor of 1000.
This so-called stimulus bill is the biggest example of political corruption and payoffs in my lifetime. The biggest jobs saved are likely to be the politicians and the lobbyists. As this article from the Washington Post points out, the entire political/lobbyist institution is fundamentally corrupt from top to bottom.
What's Obama doing? Making jokes about schools closing and turning up the thermostat in the Oval office.
Where ever did you get the idea that ANY president is responsible for repairing the weather? You act as if you have never seen Winter before.
Damage from Ice, wind, hail, and flooding happen every year in the USA. Most people who live in areas where such things happen plan ahead without government interference. Power companies routinely set aside resources to deal with such things as they happen.
a terrible misunderstanding of the money bill: it is not "to save your job" but to get the economy moving again. Fixing the infrastructure will create jobs.
Carp about this or that amount going for this or that. But why didn't you carp when lobby folks got what they wanted? When pork got tacked onto all the bills the GOP got passed during the past 8 years? Oh. I see. It is the Dems now in charge that have to be sneered at.
GOP does right, as noted to oppose. If the thing works, they will not be in power again for two decades. They are banking on its not working and having the nation sink even more.
The GO hoping they can force Dems to give a bit more on the bill to get their support. If they don't, and the bill passes....?
Roci - As I said in my second post, I was being tongue in cheek, taking a page from the hysteria when Katrina hit.
Bush 41 took grief because he had never seen a supermarket check out scanner. Bush 43 took grief over Katrina and every other disaster that occured during his watch. I remember him taking grief because he didn't visit a California forest fire site quickly enough.
BTW - From what I heard on the Weather Channel, more people in the U.S. die from the effects of winter storms than any other weather events.
And, Obama making jokes. Bush would have been roasted by the media for the same comments. Try driving a school bus on a Kentucky backroad. My kids have been out of school all week.
The power outage in the midwest is an interesting subject. When Katrina hit people were without potable water, without food and without shelter. The current power outage has left people without power, but not without food, water and shelter.
This offers one an opportunity to think about the role we choose the government to have in disaster situations. What can we reasonably expect from the government? If, as a nation, we choose to spread our residences all over God's country can we count on the grid to work 100% of the time? Can we count on the roads to be passable 100% of the time? If not, what can we reasonable expect from the government and from the utility companies? Emergency services come with a price, the price escalates the faster we provide them.
Cham - good points. Except, some people are without potable water. Water plants can't produce water without electricity and apparently some don't have enough or any backup. Some in my area have no water. I do. Nine weather related deaths have occured in Kentucky. 607,000 people customers are without power.
"But Melnykovych said that while the state is saying 607,000 customers have lost power, he thinks the number is closer to 650,000 because the state figure comes only from utilities it regulates."
"Around 93,000 customers on 55 water systems remain without access to water because of outages and storm damage"
Carbon monoxide poisoning seems to be the primary cause of death. But, unlike Katrina, you have the possibility of freezing to death. This has happened in my area over the past 20 years.
More Here
"Utility officials estimated more than 1.3 million homes and businesses from Arkansas to Ohio were powerless, and warned it could be mid-February before some customers had power."
As I noted before, we had a level 3 snow emergency which means you can be arrested for driving on the roads. So, you're sitting in a freezing house and have the capability to drive somewhere to find warmth but if you do you can be arrested. ??? Nice.
I like this: "Beshear praised the Obama administration's prompt reaction to the storm." Could've fooled me. Of course, Beshear's a Democrat. You wouldn't be hearing this if Bush was still president.
Dadvocate:
Allow me to bring up some more points. If one lives out in God's country, do they expect to rely on the grid or would it be prudent to have a back-up heating system like a wood stove? During our agrarian period farmers would have wood stoves in their kitchen as their primary source of heat. Once utility lines were built, the wood stove often stayed in the farm home as a back-up heat source.
Now builders build homes without back-up heat sources. But in the hills, like in Kentucky, it gets cold and ice happens. This country has people that hate paying taxes and want to live in rural areas where taxes are low and they feel "safe", but when disaster strikes they are ill prepared and demand services. Take a good look out in the valley at those old farm houses, watch those smokey white pillar rise up from the stoves. Those people are toasty warm.
Here's another tip, I learned this one from my friend who lives on the St. Andreas fault. Fill up clean plastic milk bottles with water and put them in your freezer, this will keep your food cold for a bit during hot weather and provide you with immediate drinking water. Even in the city, my freezer is filled mostly with frozen water.
Why do people not own a water filter, or iodine tablets($4 at Wal-Mart) or chlorine tablets? They could be melting snow on a camp stove or barbecue and boiling it. Many of my camping buddies have switched over to a steripen which works well. If you are going to live in the hinterlands I would think about these things and have some supplies on hand. Some freeze dried camp food or MREs are a good idea as well. Nobody will die from lack of a hot shower.
What ever happened to Thoreau and that business about self-reliance? As Americans we claim we can handle just about anything, but the bottom line is that we are a nation of softies, both Republican and Democrat.
As a side note, it's been years since I've used my furnace. I have skylights which are used as a passive solar heat system.
All good points. Be assured I'm not disagreeing with you one bit. I am satirizing the MSM/liberal Katrina reaction to this storm.
Because my son and I are active in Boy Scouts, we could hold out at least 2 weeks without power or any outside help if necessary. If I got a good shot on a deer, even longer. My son camped out in zero degree weather a couple of weeks ago.
Unfortunately, many of the country folks live there because they have always lived there. But, for whatever reason, are ill prepared. Some of the CO deaths and other mishaps have been in heavily populated areas. People don't take proper precautions.
The arresting people for being on the roads thing bothers me though. I could have been arrested for driving across the Ohio River to Maysville so I could sit down in a warm restaurant to have a hot meal. For miles, nothing on my side of the river had power. It's a 1.5 mile trip to Maysville.
One irony of my loss of power is that there is a power plant on the other side of the river about a mile from my house. It's pumping out megawatts and I can't get any.
Roci wrote: "But the fact that govt wastes money on things you don't like should not be used as an excuse to support waste on things you do like (or things you don't dislike as much as others)."
Well said. I think that is also active when people discuss Federalism. If I am in favor of it, then it is a Federal issue, if I am agin it, it is a State's issue. Waste is the problem, the flavor is immaterial. The Republicans lost me when I saw them spend like liberals, I saw that they had lost their way, and thus lost me.
"Too bad they couldn't stick to their convictions when it mattered."
Amen brother.
Trey
Broken window fallacy anyone?
I was going to comment about the stimulus, but I see mother nature is stimulating my (natural gas based) economy quite nicely.
Hating corporate profit is like hating yourself for making more money than necessary to feed, house, and clothe yourself and your family at some minimum level.
And living from paycheck to paycheck. "Profit", for the individual, becomes 401K investment and retirement money, college education money, vacation money, rainy day money. The only people that welfare recipients employ are government bureaucrats. And the government in turn pays those people to remain poor and end up voting democrat. Welfare is a trap. So I don't expect the poor to do anything but increase, as well as the size of government. 5 billion for ACORN will certainly help that to happen.
If one has a vivid imagination and enough distrust in our government, it can begin to look as if this financial disaster was planned, if not at least allowed to happen. The pork in this stimulus package is insane. If I were a little soul up in heaven somewhere waiting for my turn to be born, I'd go back to the end of the line and wait this thing out for a while.
A stimulis bill should be about stimulis. We all expect pork. But there is a limit. When 60-70% of a bill is pork having nothing to do with the stated purpose of a bill then there is a problem.
A stimulis bill should be about stimulis. We all expect pork. But there is a limit. When 60-70% of a bill is pork having nothing to do with the stated purpose of a bill then there is a problem.
call me old fashioned, but who decides what is and what is not stimulous and what is or is not pork. And if voting Down, does that help anything at all or is just plain Screw the Am public. This week's Magazine section in NY times has nice piece on the central importance of education in the economy etc. Is that education stimulous or pork?
Nathan wrote: "call me old fashioned, but who decides what is and what is not stimulous"
Nathan, if it was old fashioned to be confused about what is right and what is wrong, I could agree with you. But moral relativism to the point of confusion is a modern progressive tendency. So I cannot in good faith call you old fashioned.
Trey
I know how to prevent STDs and it doesn't cost a dime.
Mayor Bloomberg mentioned yesterday that million dollar Wall Street bonuses are necessary to shore up Manhattan restaurants. I guess if you own an fancy restaurant in Manhattan the government's billions of dollars spent on financial bonuses for bank executives of failing banks would be considered a positive stimulus expenditure. Everything is relative.
If you really want to see where your taxes dollars go and who has political power then you ought to do your taxes by hand. This is both very irritating -- and VERY educational. See:
http://www.ourbroker.com/?p=2515
While everyone debates how stimulus dollars should be spent it might also be a good idea to consider that steep government spending and massive deficits are good ways to induce inflation.
Evidently, I'm too much of a dumb ass to be able to figure out why a stimulus package is a better way to curtail the spread of STDs then just keeping it in my own pants where it belongs. Can I get a little help on this one?
Come'on $400 billion. That is half the stimulus proposal. No one is proposing spending half the stimulus on preventing STDs. Someone is pulling your leg.
Come'on $400 billion. That is half the stimulus proposal. No one is proposing spending half the stimulus on preventing STDs. Someone is pulling your leg.
No, the article's author mixed up millions and billion twice. The part about preventing STDs is around $400 million out of a grotesque package costing over $700 billion. It wraps up just about every liberal wet dream into one piece of legislation that almost no one has even had time to read.
redpine, Larry J is correct.
And it was straight out of Pelosi's mouth.
This comment has been removed by the author.
br549 - and it was straight out of Pelosi's mouth.
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The STDs or the wrong dollar amounts?
Sorry......had to go there.
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