Popular Posts

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

The Stimulus Bill

Shortly after class, an economics student approaches his economics professor and says, "I don't understand this stimulus bill. Can you explain it to me?"

The professor replied, "I don't have any time to explain it at my office, but if you come over to my house on Saturday and help me with my weekend project, I'll be glad to explain it to you." The student agreed.

At the agreed-upon time, the student showed up at the professor's house. The professor stated that the weekend project involved his backyard pool. They both went out back to the pool, and the professor handed the student a bucket. Demonstrating with his own bucket, the professor said, "First, go over to the deep end, and fill your bucket with as much water as you can." The student did as he was instructed.

The professor then continued, "Follow me over to the shallow end, and then dump all the water from your bucket into it." The student was naturally confused, but did as he was told.

The professor then explained they were going to do this many more times, and began walking back to the deep end of the pool.

The confused student asked, "Excuse me, but why are we doing this?"

The professor matter-of-factly stated that he was trying to make the shallow end much deeper.

The student didn't think the economics professor was serious, but figured that he would find out the real story soon enough.

However, after the 6th trip between the shallow end and the deep end, the student began to become worried that his economics professor had gone mad. The student finally replied, "All we're doing is wasting valuable time and effort on unproductive pursuits. Even worse, when this process is all over, everything will be at the same level it was before, so all you'll really have accomplished is the destruction of what could have been truly productive action!"

The professor put down his bucket and replied with a smile,

"Congratulations! You now understand the stimulus bill."

11 comments:

  1. So should we dump the bucket in the grass, or go get the hose and overflow the pool.

    Very generalized statement on the stimulus bill, but it will sell to those against it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Well put!!!!! Its the tax payers who get to do the moving of the water while the non tax payers watch and enjoy the show

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yeah he sould of added that the son you dont have yet will be paying for the pool for a long long time.

    ReplyDelete
  4. The stimulus bill is only one of many problems with this government, but the one thing that gets me the most is that there are people in this country who are tax exempt. They don’t have to pay taxes. They still get a paycheck like us. They still get government representation like every one else but they don’t have to pay taxes WHY AND WHO ARE YOU!!! AND WHY CANT I.

    Dont get me wrong I dont mind paying taxes. But why is it that these people dont have to. What makes them so dang blame special. I mean WHAT THE FRENCH TOAST!!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I agree 1:29-and tell me one more thing-how is it that people who are on AFDC or SSI get such ginormous tax refunds every year?Thats "tax exemption" at its best.
    And I am confused by the mortgage aid thing.Is there any criteria to qualify or can anyone just schlep in and have their mortgage paid?We already have programs that remodel peoples private homes for free,now we are buying them out too??????Enough already!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Per Fox news every individual could have received $58,000.00
    for what this latest stimulus
    cost. Is $12 to $14 per week
    going to change your spending habits. Obama campaigned there
    won't be any pork in his bill.
    What a lier. We must have a
    train from Los Angeles to Las Vegas.

    ReplyDelete
  7. The real lesson is:

    "Son, the reason your tuition is so high to where you have to have four outrageous student loans to keep you in debt for a lifetime is so that I can have this pool to provide you with seemingly appropriate but actually illogical analogies that lots of people on blogs will think is just the ticket to explain some complex subject, upon which they will then blast academia despite agreeing with the anecdote."

    ReplyDelete
  8. Maybe they should have supplied condoms with this bill. I thing thats the only way we can be protected from what is happening to us

    ReplyDelete
  9. 2:14, I think I love you.

    ReplyDelete
  10. This was really interesting for me. I'm not 100% pro- or anti- stimulus, there's some stuff I do like and other stuff I'm kinda doubting. Still, I like how this was explained... Kinda like a parable in the bible or one of Aesop's fable, actually. Minus the talking animals ;)

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.