Stimulus Money is Being Gobbled Up By Politicians

Here we are folk, right where many of us predicted we would be when “stimulus money” was being passed around like candy eggs on  Easter morning to “shovel ready” projects. I’m referring to the article “Budget Crunch Lesson in City Schools” appearing in Sun Chronicle  April 12.

Stimulus money that was used for operating expenses, salaries, etc. will not be available to our schools this spring to the tune of $2.4 million. Surprised?   Stimulus dollars were intended to stimulate economic growth, but as it turns out the only thing stimulated was the further expansion of government and administrative jobs, including education, which incidentally, contribute nothing to the economy at hand.  Most of the money ended up in public employee and labor union coffer doing little for the economy. As we well know, efficiency is not a requirement when it comes to mostly unaccountable public employees, in particular on state and federal levels where personal taxpayer engagement is next to impossible.

Had the stimulus money been put in the hands of taxpayers, in the form of tax cuts, the spending ability created would have provided the intended stimulus. Most of the grief we still suffer today would be history. Instead we continue to put our hard-earned dollars in the hands of those least capable of handling it wisely–elected officials and bureaucrats. They in turn continue to gobble it up creating little, but more debt!

Doug Gobin

Attleboro