Economic Stimulus

I was getting a little anxious, but the other day I finally received a cheque from the Internal Revenue Service as a part of the $64 billion Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 pushed through by the United States Congress in February 2008.

As the name suggests, the cheques were sent in the hope that consumers would spend it, thereby stimulating the economy and avert/alleviate a recession. When this Act was initially passed, I was glad to get some of my money back but doubtful that the stimulus would do as intended. Back in February I guess the economic gloom wasn't yet so dark as it is presently, nevertheless, I couldn't imagine there being enough spendthrifts to affect the economy. Surely the majority of consumers wouldn't follow the example of record deficits and debts of the US government. There are bills to pay, after all.

I have no idea if the stimulus worked, works, or will work as designed -- I'll leave that up to the economists; this is all just a round about way for me to say that back in February I did intend to spend my $600, probably to subsidize a flat-screen television. But, now? No way, no how. At least, not in a way that I think would accomplish what the Act intended.

My cheque is going to pay for gas. My cheque is going into my bank account, from which it will be used to pay off my credit cards, with which I purchase gasoline. Assuming prices stay the same (psyche!) I calculate $600 will pay for 3-months of gas. Frightening.

Half a tank of gasoline can cost me $40-50. That's half. That only lasts me a week.

I never thought I'd say this, but purchasing a motorcycle or scooter is getting more appealing by the day. The thing is, buying one would set me back several thousand dollars at least (not even including all the other associated costs), so it would be some time before I recouped the cost in gas savings. The other thing is, I doubt gas prices will drop, and the sooner I started, the sooner I'd recoup the cost and the more money I'd save.

::sigh::