Will $13 a week provide a real stimulus to American households?
The $787 Billion economic stimulus package passed by Congress last week and expected to be signed into law by President Obama next week includes a provision that will cost $116 Billion. This provision is expected to increase the take home pay of American workers by about $13 a week. Do you think this will have an actual impact on American families economic situation?
Yes, it will
Side Score: 22
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No, it will not
Side Score: 16
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"Households" isn't the target of the stimulus, the economy is. When you target people who you know need to spend the money, then you know most of that $13/week is going back into the economy. So it's not $13/ week, It's $13/week multiplied by the number of households who will spend the $13/week. So while the relief provided is minimal, the stimulus may be more substantial. At the end of the day though, any tax cut by itself is just delaying the inevitable, and making people happy for a little. Which is why 65% of the stimulus bill is aimed at creating jobs. In spite of House and Senate Republicans' continued insistance that things like building railroads isn't a job. Side: Yes, it will
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Well, if you insist completely ignore the REST of the stimulus bill and concentrate only on this ... Yes, the $50 would make a huge difference to me right now. Work has come almost to a standstill at my company, which hauls bulk cement for construction projects. I used to make $50k a year; right now $50 represents about half a week's net pay. So, yes, it would make a HUGE difference as I struggle to survive the Republican's Second Great Depression. But, let me bring you back to the real world, the one inhabited by the rest of us who do not wait dutifully for our daily dose of Republican talking points. That's right, the vast majority of Americans DO live in this world. My company is sitting on enough contracts to keep us all well paid - as soon as the stimulus bill is signed into law. We're ready to go. Trucks are fueled, cement has been made, we're ready to roll the moment the government gives the contractors we work for the green light to actually start pouring concrete to make the freeways that aren't being built because there isn't enough money in the state budget to get started. I have this from the very highest authority within the company. So, while these jerks in the House and Senate screwed around to delay this bill for no earthly reason other than to amuse their fd up, whack job base, 450 of us sat idle for all this time, making a run or two a week instead of two runs a day. Irony of irony, one of these nuts comes up to me the other day and complained about the "stimulus" bill and how it wouldn't help anyone, and with the very next breath complained that he was only working one day a week. Well duh. I walked away from him in utter contempt and disgust. Thank you Republicans for causing this depression from not paying any attention to the chinnanegans the banks were pulling; thanks Republicans for not doing anything once the depression started; thanks Republicans for sitting with your head up your s while millions suffered, grandstanding to appease your base, what precious little is left of it. Oh, you had better bet this will remain in my memory for generations to come. Payback will be a *ch, I assure you. So, hope that answers your question. Yes, it most certainly will and could you possibly think of telling your worthless Republican congress that if they aren't man enough to fix the problem they created, at least have the common decency to stand the hell out of the way while better souls than they come to our aid. Side: Yes, it will
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The stimulus package proposed by Obama is for those in need only. For example, those who are in danger of foreclosure or those whose house in "underwater" (which means they owe more than what their house is worth). Each American will not being getting $13. The money is given to those in financial trouble. As Obama said, those still earning $250,000 a year will not need extra money. In this way, we can make sure that multimillionaire bankers don't get any benefits. Side: Stimulus for people in need only
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Compared to the total cost of this measure, it will not provide relief to people who are struggling financially. $13 a week barely provides one meal a month for a family of four. I do not think that this measure will provide any noticeable lift in the economy. Side: No, it will not
If every family that recieves $13/ week spends that $13/ week on "one meal/ month" you'll see an increase in food sales in the hundreds of millions. So that would be a huge boost to that part of the economy. So far everyone seems focused on the $13 dollars as it effects individuals. The focus should be the millions and millions represented by that small tax cut taken as a whole. The only question is whether people spend it. Tax cuts are not a huge stimulus though, and they never have been. At the end of the day people need jobs. Side: Yes, it will
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There is no such things as a stimulus when the government spends .... the more they spend the more you'll pay in tax. The country is in trouble because people got into debt. This stimulus is printed credit. The government has no money to spend. Not only will everybody get taxed for the stimulus but they will be taxed for the interest on the stimulus. Side: No, it will not
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What would you do if you got this money? A better and more revealing question (to prove my point) would be "What would you do with $50,000 right now?" Chances are, you are not going to spend that money going out to eat, investing in stock, buying a new car, or whatever, but you are probably going to put the money in the bank. I don't see why people insist on the idea of financial stimulus checks, because, in today's world, nobody is going to spend that money on things that actually help the economy. Right now, the bank looks like the best place for any amount of money to anybody. Side: No, it will not
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