Stimulus checks and income limits: a thread and thought journey.

As much as I hate agreeing with goplets, because it usually means I’m missing something important, I can initially see a logic behind having an income cutoff. 1/10

I’m past the majority of income figures bandied about. I’ve stayed employed, and saved a crapton of $$ on not commuting and not eating out. With a family of four, the $2400 we got just after New Year’s was a nice pad, but not needed. 2/10

OK, it helped, sure. We just dropped >$10K putting a new roof on FAR Manor, but I covered the entire amount out of savings, all of it money we didn’t spend since the pandemic started. It gave us a little cushion. We might use an extra $5600 on siding or windows. 3/10

But! We live in Sector 706, where the cost of living isn’t huge. A family in LA or NYC with my income might find that stimulus a lifeline. The unemployed, regardless of previous income, would say it’s essential. 4/10

So if an income cutoff is necessary, maybe put it at $250K/yr… the 1%. But if we’re only saving 1%, what’s the point?

I might have an answer: it’s not because goplets suddenly don’t want to give $$ to rich people. They see it as a stepping stone to UBI. 5/10

The things people do with extra money are as numerous as the people who get it. Home improvement, repairing or replacing a car, charity, paying off bills, road trip, continuing education… the list goes on. All those things break a link in the chain of dependency… 6/10

…for the recipient and the people they pay along the way. Now, imagine what might happen if the stimulus is recurring, and *everyone* has a guaranteed income floor. Coupled with M4A, is it a reach to think millions of people might start their own business? 7/10

A self-described “social Darwinist,” editor in chief of a certain magazine around 1980, said everyone should work for themselves. ‘Course, he himself had Daddy’s money to fall back on if his ventures didn’t pan out. Dunno if he considered (or cared) about anyone else. 8/10

So, as usual, we find goplets are insincere. Limiting the stimulus checks to certain income levels is merely a distraction, perhaps a delay tactic. I’m sure we’ll hear complaints that someone “wasted” the $$ for a vacation—so what? It boosted the tourism sector. 9/10

And that’s the point of a stimulus. It’s going to boost all sorts of industries, especially (in the case of homeowners) local businesses. And that’s what we all want, right? 10/end