They really believe this stuff!

Have to share a little "discussion" I had on the Boortz forum:

Idiot poster (my name for him) Can't Have it Both Ways

Boortz mentions that the stimulus package has put the nation deeper into debt; he also says that its the citizens' money and that we should get to spend it ourselves. Which is it Boortz? Is the federal government borrowing the stimulus money or is it taxing us for the money?

The truth is the money is being borrowed, mainly from China. The stimulus money is not coming out of our paychecks. It's true that the money that will be used to pay back the stimulus loan will come from us though; in theory though, but by then hopefully the stimulus package will have had a positive affect on our economy, and the payback of the loan won't be as painful.

Whether or not the stimulus is effective, that is in theory how it works. We are borrowing money to prime the pump of our economy, in hopes that the economy will be primed when it is time to repay the loan (thus making payback easier). Boortz either isn't aware of this, or chooses to ignore this very basic concept in his article.

Boortz also ignores the fact that if we were to keep more of our tax dollars, a considerable percentage of it would be kept in banks or be used to pay down credit card debt, and would not go towards stimulating the economy. (personally I don't have a problem with that, I'm just stating a basic economic theory which Boortz ignores).

So now the economy is as bad as it was back in 1983, which was over two years into Reagan's first term. But wait, weren't the economic woes of 1983 still Carter's fault? Obama's been in office almost 6 months and yet now he's getting full blame for a worsening economy (the economy got a lot worse under Reagan than it ever did under Carter, before things improved).

You can't have it both ways folks.

Me: This guy himself ignores that if money is kept in banks, it is there for reloaning! Good for the economy. Paying down your personal debt means you then have more disposable income to spend. Again, good for the economy.

He also seems to think we shouldn't be concerned because all the stimulus hasn't been spent yet. He has no ability to project into the future and see trouble ahead, just the now is all that is important. Oh we're borrowing it from China, it's not like it's coming out of OUR pockets.... Now show of hands, even if the economy gets stimulated, do any of really think it'll be enough to pay back the stimulus, bailouts, multiple bailouts and corporation grabbing, cap & trade rebates and incentives, health care? Any one?

Oh it gets worse:

However a lot of economists believe that increased government spending helps the economy in times of slow economic growth, or a recession.

Obama and his team clearly believe this. Time will tell if this is true or not. On the other hand, some economists are saying that the stimulus package is not large enough to have the desired impact.

Obama has pledged to cut the deficits over time. My hope is that the economy turns around soon and that Obama does cut spending over the next few years...(but I'll believe it when I see it).

Me: And a lot of economists don't believe increased spending will help. Some even think that it will make things worse. Like the CBO. But I am sure that "Obama and his team" believes it and would love to do a bigger stimulus.

And yeah, Obama has pledged to cut the deficits over time. He also has said he does not want to run banks, does not want to run car companies, so it always worries me when he says he does not want to do something. I'm looking out the window to see the next rollout of something he does not want to do.

And all the while, insulting me like *I* am the idiot!