Hi Patrick,

A few of days ago, I was thinking again in disgust about the $700+ billion bailout package that Congress gave to the U.S. Treasury.  Those of us who are regular readers of the articles posted on the Four Winds 10 website all knew that it was just another redistribution of wealth scheme to bailout those individuals most responsible for our nations financial predicament and least deserving of any assistance.  Now that the American public is beginning to see that those executives are just lining their own pockets with our money and using the remainder to buy out other banks that don\'t have their political connections, even the most ignorant are beginning to see that something is not right.  Those banks were supposed to use that money to lend to other smaller banks who in turn would lend to still others until more credit became available in the system.  It is not happening.  I recall one article on your website which gave a worst case scenario of supermarkets being unable to st!

 ock their shelves if they didn\'t have access to credit to buy the goods in the first place.  A typical supermarket probably has over a million dollars of inventory on its shelves and a very small and tight profit margin.  Like many businesses, they need to have available credit in order to operate on a daily basis.

My point is that the $700+ billion is just being thrown down the drain with little positive impact on our economy.  As I pondered just how much money $700+ billion really is, something occurred to me.  What follows is just a projection off the top of my head, so it will require further analysis by the \"experts.\"  For ease of calculation, I made a rough estimate that there are 100 million Americans who paid taxes last year to the IRS.  If you divide 100 million into $700 billion, you end up with $7000.

I asked myself, wouldn\'t it have made more sense if Congress had just given back a refund on the individual taxes people paid in 2007 with a cap of say $5000?  This wouldn\'t be a government handout or welfare.  What it would be is a return of money that hard-working Americans already paid to the IRS.  If you paid no taxes last year, you would get no refund.  If you paid $2500 in taxes, you would get $2500 back.  If you paid $8000 in taxes, you would get the $5000 maximum refund back.  A married couple could get as much as $10,000 back!

What would an average American do with that kind of money?  They might pay down their credit card debt.  If they were in danger of foreclosure, they could use that money to pay their mortgage for at least two months more.  They might use that money to pay for their utilities or put food on the table for their families.  They might use some of it to buy nicer Christmas gifts for their loved ones.  Some people might use the money towards buying a new car.  Many average working Americans would deposit some or all of the money into their local banks or credit unions.

What would be the result of this?  More goods and services would be bought and this would stimulate the economy.  Credit card lenders, banks, and credit unions would receive more cash which would improve their overall balance sheets.  The money would be spread around much more evenly and fairly.  Car dealers might actually sell some new cars.  Many bank foreclosures would be halted.  Less people would be laid off from their jobs.

My point is that $700+ billion is a lot of money.  We the taxpayers are going to be responsible for paying it back.  The money to repay it will come from the sweat of our brows.  Congress used the money to selectively reward irresponsible bankers and helped them to expand the size of their business at our expense.  My suggestion would actually stimulate the economy.  If the $600 stimulus package was a good idea earlier this year, than why not $5000?  It is not a handout.  It is a return of our own money.

My suggestion is so obvious, I don\'t understand why Nancy Pelosi, Barney Frank, and the rest of Congress did not consider it.  Don\'t they think that we can handle spending our own money?  I don\'t understand why most of the traitors in Congress were re-elected to office by the American people.  Sigh.  When will the electorate open their eyes?  Incidentally, does anyone out there think that Henry Paulson is going to have a hard time finding a job in the banking industry once he leaves his post as Secretary of the U.S. Treasury?  Can anyone think of any banks that might offer him a job?  I could name a few.  Somehow, I don\'t think that Hank is going to be spending much time in the unemployment line.

If Congress and the White House are seriously planning on spending more non-existent money, they would be much wiser if they simply gave the money to the American people.

(Reply)

----- Original Message -----

From: JC

To: bellringer@fourwinds10.com

Sent: Tuesday, November 25, 2008 5:19 PM

Subject: Re Neal's obvious common sense suggestion

 

Hi Patrick!

 

I know so many of us feel the way Neal does.

 

Do right and give the money back to the people. This constant greed (years) has put so many under. It , of course, has been obvious to person's who are aware for the past 20 years that working class America was being abandoned.

 

If billions wer given back to the people the economy would be moving right now.  It really has been a criminal act against we the people.  Still hard to believe.

JC

Neal