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“It’s on the government!”



A little psychological game I invented the other day: pretending like when you use cash (since it has little pictures of the government symbolic objects and persons on it) that the government is actually paying for it. Think to yourself, “Don’t worry, it’s on the government!” and suddenly that weird lingering guilt about spending money (that I guess comes from the socio-economics of my upbringing) vanishes. It’s like somebody else is paying for it. Why isn’t the government bailing out the Everyman[public domain] instead of the CorporationMan™, or at least in addition to? Maybe that’s Obamanomics! Maybe once people are starving they’ll have bombers fly over and drop packages of cold hard cash to “stimulate the economy” across the American country-side!

ObamaMillions.jpg







3 Reader Responses

  1. ian Says:
    November 25th, 2008 at 9:14 am

    Reminds me of a forward I got shortly after the bailout was first announced:

    Hi Pals,

    I’m against the $85,000,000,000.00 bailout of AIG.

    Instead, I’m in favor of giving $85,000,000,000 to America in a We Deserve It Dividend.

    To make the math simple, let’s assume there are 200,000,000 bonafide U.S. Citizens 18+.

    Our population is about 301,000,000 +/- counting every man, woman and child. So 200,000,000 might be a fair stab at adults 18 and up..

    So divide 200 million adults 18+ into $85 billion that equals $425,000.00.

    My plan is to give $425,000 to every person 18+ as a We Deserve It Dividend.

    Of course, it would NOT be tax free.

    So let’s assume a tax rate of 30%.

    Every individual 18+ has to pay $127,500.00 in taxes.

    That sends $25,500,000,000 right back to Uncle Sam.

    But it means that every adult 18+ has $297,500.00 in their pocket.

    A husband and wife has $595,000.00.

    What would you do with $297,500.00 to $595,000.00 in your family?

    Pay off your mortgage - housing crisis solved.

    Repay college loans - what a great boost to new grads

    Put away money for college - it’ll be there

    Save in a bank - create money to loan to entrepreneurs.

    Buy a new car - create jobs

    Invest in the market - capital drives growth

    Pay for your parent’s medical insurance - health care improves

    Enable Deadbeat Dads to come clean - or else

    Remember this is for every adult U S Citizen 18+ including the folks who lost their jobs at Lehman Brothers and every other company that is cutting back. And of course, for those serving in our Armed Forces.

    If we’re going to re-distribute wealth let’s really do it…instead of trickling out a puny $1000.00 ( ‘vote buy’ ) economic incentive that is being proposed
    by one of our candidates for President.

    If we’re going to do an $85 billion bailout, let’s bail out every adult U S Citizen 18+!

    As for AIG - liquidate it.

    Sell off its parts.

    Let American General go back to being American General.

    Sell off the real estate.

    Let the private sector bargain hunters cut it up and clean it up.

    Here’s my rationale. We deserve it and AIG doesn’t.

    Sure it’s a crazy idea that can ‘never work.’

    But can you imagine the Coast-To-Coast Block Party!

    How do you spell Economic Boom?

    I trust my fellow adult Americans to know how to use the $85 Billion

    We Deserve It Dividend more than I do the geniuses at AIG or in Washington DC

    And remember, The Birk plan only really costs $59.5 Billion because $25.5 Billion is returned instantly in taxes to Uncle Sam.

    Ahhh…I feel so much better getting that off my chest.

    Kindest personal regards,

    Birk

    T. J. Birkenmeier, A Creative Guy & Citizen of the Republic

  2. Julia Says:
    November 26th, 2008 at 9:21 pm

    once people are starving they’ll have bombers fly over and drop packages of cold hard cash

    Did you know the Chairman of the Federal Reserve was called Helicopter Ben when you wrote this?

    http://www.financialweek.com/apps/pbcs...ll/article?AID=/20070820/REG/70816016

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helicopter_drop

  3. Big Elk Says:
    November 26th, 2008 at 9:42 pm

    I just thought it seemed like a funny idea! Like dropping cash would help people! As if! It would be probably one of the shortest paths back to direct neighborhood warlordism: where suddenly people whose backyards these things land in become the “Big Man” when socially they did not earn it. This is probably exactly what happens when the US drops food and supplies via aircraft over other countries: it actually serves to destabilize and re-distribute wealth and social power amongst a geo-political-economic region…



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