An Economic Idea.........

**forHISglory** · 01-09-2009, 04:20 PM

First, I'm not an economist. I'm just an ordinary person who sits around and thinks of ideas, and who tries to make the best of life.

I got to thinking about all the economic bail-outs recently, and wondered what if...........

What if, instead of a bail-out to auto manufacturers, the government instead paid the first $5000 of any new car that you bought between January and June of this year? The car would have to be American made. Would this help the auto industry? Would it help consumers? What advantages or flaws do you see to this plan? Would it stimulate the economy? Would it be too little too late?

I really dislike the bail-out idea, so I was just fishing inside of my head to find alternatives. What do you think?

What if, instead of a bail-out to banks, the government purchased a $5000 CD for each family? The money would be available to banks to use, even as it grows interest for the family. What advantages and flaws do you see here? What do you think?

What if, instead of regular federal income tax this year, the government only took half of what was due each household? The other half would be for families to use to stimulate the economy. Possible problem: What if families saved it instead of spent it? What do you think?

OK. So I have too much time on my hands......... But play around with these ideas. Tear them apart. Contribute some of your own. Let's think outside the box.

**forHISglory** · 01-09-2009, 05:01 PM

I'm as capable of dreaming up bad ideas as I am of dreaming up good ideas. Maybe more so........ lol! But I'm hoping to stir up a little discussion on what some possibilities are to our dilemma. Far fetched? OK. It still means that we are thinking!!!
Thanks, Aimeebee, for your 2c worth. I love to see people thinking!

**forHISglory** · 01-09-2009, 05:26 PM

Nothing to be sorry about, Aimeebee! I was delighted to see your response and know that you have been thinking about this also. That's all I really want: just thinking people brainstorming together. I appreciate your willingness to join in the discussion.

**frugalbabe** · 01-09-2009, 06:47 PM

This is my thinking on the whole train wreck. We keep hearing the auto industry is too BIG to fail, AIG is too BIG to fail, and get ready for it folks but now they're thinking about bailing out the newspaper industry because it's too BIG to fail. I think this is backward thinking. I think the group of people that keep this country churning every day is you and I. You know the guy and gal that everyday goes to work, some of us have our own businesses. We produce things, build things, invent things. We send our kids to school, buy homes, groceries, cars. We know how to balance our budget, and for the most part we stay out of crazy debt. We apparently are not too BIG to fail because many of us are watching our jobs go. We don't want handouts, we don't want government stimulus programs, heck the less we have to deal with the government in our lives the happier we are. I want the government to make sure my borders are secure and my constitution is protected and that is about IT. The only way I want help monetarily from the government is let me keep more of my own money, give me tax BREAKS not CREDITS. Repeal the capital gains tax for a while so my business can get the foothold it needs. Let me invest my own money the way I see fit for my elder years.
10 years ago my hometown was destroyed in a flood and I mean it was leveled. At the time we thought it was the worst thing that could happen. Now that town is better and stronger because it allowed us to build from new completely from scratch. Where businesses and buildings had been decaying a vibrant town has sprung up. Sometimes it takes completely crashing and losing everything to become better and stronger. The only thing these bail-outs have created is business practices as usual only this time with the governments blessings. It was the government getting involved in the FIRST place that caused this how the heck do they think they can save it when they are the poison!

**tammy8701** · 01-09-2009, 07:32 PM

why was there not a bailout for america motors when they went under

**momof2joys** · 01-09-2009, 08:05 PM

You know this is something dh and I discuss on a daily basis!! He was just telling me that he was listening to one of the talk radio shows and it said that if the government needed took the $700 billion dollars it used to bail out banks and used it differently, we wouldn't have to pay income taxes until like April or May!!! How cool would that be, just think about the extra money in each paycheck, dh says that would be an extra $200 or so for us!! Just letting you know what we talk about!!

**MandiDawn** · 01-09-2009, 08:20 PM

My biggest problem with the bailouts is this line "xxx company is to big to fail". While I agree to an extent (heck, I work in Detroit, I know how big the auto comany's are) I think that one stipulation of the bailout hould bes they have to make themselves smaller (ie so they are not to big to fail). Split themselves off, reduce employess, reduce products, whatever, not my problem, but take steps IMMEDIATLY to reduce their size so that they can't come back in a year in the same situation.
It's a monopoly (on jobs) and I thought monopoly's were illegal. I know that it's a differnt way to look at it, but if you think it thru, it makes since.
And I think one of the reasons they are failing is because they are quite top-heavy. Reducing their size will make them less top-heavy because they will keep the people who produce, not the people who manage. Can you imagine a car company with 7 managers and two line-people? that's what the big three are on a much larger scale.
Take Ford for instance:
The engineers could be one company, selling their designs to the Ford brand name, which could contract out to the manufacturing plants. I bet they would manufacture out to the lowest bidder, thus reducing the cost to build cars. The design firm would make designs people want to buy since they don't get paid unless ford buys their design. You could have 7 or 8 design firms vying for their design to be picked, then if ONE goes under, to bad, no bailout for you, another firm would be their to take their place.
Nobody wants to do that, since it's such a radical change from what has always been done. But it would significanly lower both the cost of cars and the cost of doing business.

**annertak** · 01-09-2009, 09:28 PM

I, too, think the government is being very short-sighted. Who cares if the big companies go out of business? I know they create a lot of jobs, but if they didn't have the monopoly, it would open the road for many others who would love to start a business. As it sits right now, the only people truly benefiting from the large corporations are the people at the top! Why would I care if they fail?

It's like using tough love on a child. You have to let them fail at times to make them responsible adults. Bailouts are just handouts that aren't teaching anyone anything, and they're also just putting a bandaid on the wound.

What if we could keep more of our paycheck? Why is it okay anymore to make the tax burden so huge that people can't afford to eat or start a small business? What if people in government took paycuts? Ah, but they wouldn't. They all think they have their finger on the pulse of America, but we found out when they passed the bailouts that they don't care what we are saying.

I firmly believe our forefathers would be turning over in their graves at what goverment has become. It is certainly not as it was intended!

Okay, lol, I'll step off now.

**forHISglory** · 01-10-2009, 12:12 AM

What if our senators and representative really were civil SERVANTS? And they all lived together in a big boarding house in DC? Eating at a common table, and taking care of business in a timely manner? It wouldn't take a big pay check to maintain a fancy DC house that way.

Oh my....... my fancy is taking flight tonight.......

**frugalbabe** · 01-10-2009, 12:33 PM

Originally Posted by forHISglory

What if our senators and representative really were civil SERVANTS? And they all lived together in a big boarding house in DC? Eating at a common table, and taking care of business in a timely manner? It wouldn't take a big pay check to maintain a fancy DC house that way.

Oh my....... my fancy is taking flight tonight.......

Hee hee I LOVE that idea. What gets my ire up is the fact that while we are watching trillions of dollars flowing this way and that they are still spending time debating and passing things like this new law that will make second-hand clothes illegal or forcing all of us to change our lightbulbs --- thrift stores and light bulbs is that really where we need to be focusing on right now?!? Give me a break!