Addicted to $timulation

Although they say that the economy is healthy, the administration also now says that we must stimulate it immediately with $150 billion. This is like your doctor saying you're healthy but adding, hey, since you're in the office, why don't I give you a shot of adrenalin right in the heart. To the trillions given away in the last tax cut, add the trillion dollars spent on Iraq, and you've got a mountain of unpaid expenses. Like a 'nightcap' after a night of binge drinking, another $150 billion won't make a huge difference either way.

Politicians in both parties are always happy to give away money. They only argue about who should get it. There is no reason to trust this administration to design a stimulus package that won't make things worse. The problem with any stimulus package, even one agreed upon by both parties, is that our current situation is a consequence of the 6 years of continuous, strong economic stimulus we've already had. Maybe any stimulus will only delay the inevitable day of reckoning.

Basic macro economics says the next step is inflation, maybe rampant inflation. Our advantage over third world economies is that our debt is denominated in our own currency. Inflation actually helps the debtor, so long as they can pay with inflated currency. Fortunately, the the new bankruptcy laws, which benefit the lenders, don't apply to us as a nation.