Maybe I'm too young to understand, but can someone tell me...

[sachiko]

what this "Stimulus Bill" is supposed to stimulate? I know they're planning to take a huge amount of tax dollars and spend it. But how is that different than what they've been doing all along?

We don't understand it either

[James B]

The pork industry.[:@] The bill is about 70 percent Pork and less than 5 percent job creation. The rest is probably good spending. One thing, and only one thing is for sure, it's going to stimulate the printing presses and help the paper industry, however that will probably go to China.

[stealthycat II]

and like every other govt cash handout, once the money is spent and gone, the real underlying problems that haven't been addressed will still be there

[Aught Six]

Yes, you are way too young to understand stimulation. I won't explain the mechanics, butrememberthat Congress' aim here is to stimulate itself.

[Centauri]

The Wall Street fat cats will get more money, imaginary tax cuts, imaginary money for us, and a lot of pork.

[RainmakerIII]

This Stimulus package will work to help ease the pain americans are being put through because of the republican policies of the Bush administration. Obama entered office with this catastrophe dumped in his lap and dumped on the american people. I hope it is just the start, with many more things to come, to gain back a healthy climate for the middle class and working people. The very people fighting this bill, were the ones that put us here, after lacing their pockets and endowing their special interest. The republicans will never change, they will fight tooth and nail to destroy a recovery.

[Fieldmouse]

ORIGINAL: RainmakerIII

This Stimulus package will work to help ease the pain americans are being put through because of the republican policies of the Bush administration. Obama entered office with this catastrophe dumped in his lap and dumped on the american people. I hope it is just the start, with many more things to come, to gain back a healthy climate for the middle class and working people. The very people fighting this bill, were the ones that put us here, after lacing their pockets and endowing their special interest. The republicans will never change, they will fight tooth and nail to destroy a recovery.

Please rainmaker, care to back that up? Please enlighten us more than your high school civics lecture from today. I can post numbers and have that have shown more people have moved up in class then the other way around. I can post historical data showing what Obama is doing is a repeat to what was done in the 30's and it was a disaster. Why don't you study what you believe and back it up or acknowledge it can't be therfore it's wrong?

[etothepii]

ORIGINAL: RainmakerIII

This Stimulus package will work to help ease the pain americans are being put through because of the republican policies of the Bush administration. Obama entered office with this catastrophe dumped in his lap and dumped on the american people. I hope it is just the start, with many more things to come, to gain back a healthy climate for the middle class and working people. The very people fighting this bill, were the ones that put us here, after lacing their pockets and endowing their special interest. The republicans will never change, they will fight tooth and nail to destroy a recovery.

LOL! You should write for Pravda!

The original idea behind "stimulus" was to give the people back a chunk of their tax money, with the hopes that the money would be spent. This increase in commerce would stimulate growth in the economy.

The current bill has co-opted the name stimulus, but it is really Obama's grab at cash to fulfill all of his outrageous campaign promises. Meanwhile, congress is lumping in billions of their own pork projects. Some pork could create some jobs, but most of the contents of the bill are wasteful spending, or spending that in no way creates any economic growth or commerce.

[Arthur P]

Nobody outside Congress even knows what's in this stinkin' bill. It's thicker than a Dallas phone book. So, I have to say these guys who are telling you it's all pork are full of it. All they're doing is listening to Boenker and McConnell and I trust the garbage that falls out of their faces about as much as I do the drivel from Barney and Nancy.

The main idea of the stimulus is to spend buttloads of money on infrastructure projects that have been needed but deferred for the past 30 years. Updating our power grid is in there, and you can ask a million people in Kentucky right now if that's a needed project. Also, as someone mentioned above, Obama has his alternative energy projects in there too which, unlike a lot of the fellas around here, I happen to support wholeheartedly. We need the new technologies.

Let out bids and then the contractors will have to hire people to do the work.The tools suppliers will have to hire to produce the tools and equipment needed. The materials suppliers will have to hire people to produce the goods. The raw material suppliers will have to hire people to do that work. Then there'll be the support people: day care, schools, teachers, accountants, clerks, cooks, drivers, engineers, machinists... etc.

A lot of the so-called 'pork' I've heard about is side funding for the support infrastructure, but I have to admit there have been some pretty idiotic things that have snuck into this thing and they are being whittled out. I hope, rather than cut the size of the bill, that the money that would have gone to the idiot fringe stuff will be added to the infrastructure projects. Even if we put all of it into infrastructure, we'll still be more than a trillion dollars short of the actual estimated cost to fix everything that the American Society of Civil Engineers needs fixing. But it's a start.

[Fieldmouse]

The main idea of the stimulus is to spend buttloads of money on infrastructure projects that have been needed but deferred for the past 30 years.

How much of this bill goes to infrastructure?

Also, as someone mentioned above, Obama has his alternative energy projects in there too which, unlike a lot of the fellas around here, I happen to support wholeheartedly. We need the new technologies.

The market will dictate this. The government can not. What happens in two,three year when the money runs out because the market has voted no?

Let out bids and then the contractors will have to hire people to do the work.The tools suppliers will have to hire to produce the tools and equipment needed. The materials suppliers will have to hire people to produce the goods. The raw material suppliers will have to hire people to do that work. Then there'll be the support people: day care, schools, teachers, accountants, clerks, cooks, drivers, engineers, machinists... etc.

Total pipe dream. You left out the part where you say only Americans working for American companies can benifit. If you work for any company that is foreign own, your on your own. This pork isn't for you. You are scum and don't deserve any government contracts! That is assuming the government knows what projects are best. Every year I here the candidates run on rebuilding our infrastructure? What happen? Did they or didn't they. If I support this pork, will you promise I will get a 2 election break?

A lot of the so-called 'pork' I've heard about is side funding for the support infrastructure,

How much funding of the 1 trillion dollar bill goes to infrastructure?

we'll still be more than a trillion dollars short of the actual estimated cost to fix everything that the American Society of Civil Engineers needs fixing.

Hmm can you say PORK?