As the Jamaicans say,

BIG UP to my inchoate fan base. It takes a lot of gumption to openly admit you enjoy reading this esoteric nonsense.

Signing in to this blog for the first time in a while and reading that someone had actually commented on a post has inspired me to make an addition. There are so many things to write about I struggle to focus my thoughts on any single topic. Why not spew forth some thoughts on the economy & impending stimulus package?

I am hesitant to endorse any spending spree, though I understand the argument that we need to do something now, else all will be lost. I do think there is something to the converse of the argument: that we ought to let the problem play out, so that the system will re-start itself and shed all of the pernicious assets, activities, etc. that fueled the crisis. The problem with this is the sheer amount of short term costs that it will create. No one wants to suffer through poverty for the sake of future generations, or for the health of the system itself.

Because this non-action has no political feasibility, it is better to focus criticism on the nature of the proposed package itself. In my opinion the foundation of the plan ought to be job creation-- I think this almost goes without saying. "Freeing up credit" is useless if the majority of society lacks the ability to cover loans requiring that credit. WWII ended the Great Depression by creating a demand for all new types of labor. When consumers have money to consume, all is well. The question therefore becomes, how do we catalyze a similar demand? Surely starting a war of similar proportions would help, but let's not endorse that option just yet.

Here is a break-down of the Stimulus package that passed the U.S.H.O.R. last week. Where do we find this job creation?

Extended unemployment benefits are a short term band-aid, helping those who don't work to not starve. Important, yes, but not a priority. When their aide runs out and there are still no jobs for them to enter, what then?

In health care we have some line items that might help create jobs, especially the notion of modernizing the health care system. But the tasks this entails are for skilled workers, and won't create a dent in the under-educated class' unemployment.

It is in the categories of infrastructure, energy, science & technology, housing, and environment, where we begin to see items that will spur job creation. In each of these categories are billions being dedicated towards starting new projects and getting all kinds of people to work. Hence it will be in the success of these projects that the economy will rebound or crumble.

So clearly the Obama camp recognizes the need to get people off of the welfare doles and into work. But the question then becomes, what are they working for? What kind of society are these projects creating? The answer to this will set the direction our country will head in for the next century. It is also where the underlying value of the stimulus package is to be found. Unfortunately the future this bill is funding appears to be shaping up to repeat a lot of the past.

I would argue that these jobs should be used to facilitate a "Green Economy," one in which we maximize our ability to reap the resources offered to us by the planet without damaging it. From this CBS overview, I fear this priority has received little direct attention. Look at the infrastructure piece, for instance. New highways, bridges, and mass-transit lines will be springing up all over the place. But where's the incentive to use alternative fuels?

Likewise, none of the other job-creating categories seem to officially embrace the importance of creating a new, green economy, founded on sustainability and not profitability. I may be overlooking something, and I hope I am, but I fear I'm not. Creating jobs to just increase the scope of the economy we already have will just delay the inevitable transformation that our economy must undergo if we at all care to have our progeny exist as Americans in 500 years, or if we care whether or not the planet they live on will be inhabitable.

Obama's rhetoric indicates he'd like to see this bill stimulate the type of advanced economy I'm referring to. I can only hope he won't have to compromise this ideal in order to get the bill passed.