Since my previous blog, I have been doing some additional thinking about the rebates we Americans may be receiving as early as May, thanks to the largesse of President Bush and our congressional leaders.

The purpose of these rebates, as I mentioned before, is to jumpstart our ailing economy; and apparently, the President and our illustrious House leaders sitting up there on Capitol Hill believe that we Americans will all do our civic duty and rush out the door, jump into our gas-guzzling SUVs, then go speeding off to the nearest mall or Wal-Mart, Target, or K-Mart, where we will proceed to go on some frantic shopping spree, purchasing things like 200 dollar Nikes, designer handbags, handheld Palm Pilots, the latest kitchen gizmos, and maybe plasma TVs. But, again, that is the purpose of the rebates—we are supposed to go shop until we drop. 

Personally, I often wonder if our nation’s leaders have been paying attention. Don’t they realize that many of us are robbing from Peter to pay Paul in order to meet our monthly expenses? Have they checked the current prices for the most basic necessities, like food, clothing, electricity, fuel, and, hey, even diapers and baby formula? Have they heard about all the foreclosures on home loans? Do they know how many people are filing for bankruptcy? Have they noticed how many companies have either terminated employees or forced them into early retirement? How many have put a freeze on hiring? Have our leaders read the latest unemployment statistics? If so, how can they actually believe a one-time tax rebate of a few hundred dollars (more in some cases but not that much more) is really going to save America from drowning in the cloudburst of the coming recession?

Then again, I seriously doubt most of our leaders have even been listening to or reading the news, at least any that isn’t about one of their own who has become involved in yet another scandal or been exposed in some undercover sting operation? Worse, I also doubt those people sitting up there on Capitol Hill really care about the state of our economy. But why should they? After all, they are considerably better off financially than the average American; and, in fact, many of them earn more in a month—for very little actual work—than many of us earn in a year. And since this is the case, I often think one of the requirements for anyone to be elected to office in this country should be for that person to have to go live among the masses in small-town America, juggle two minimum wage jobs, struggle to pay the bills, worry about not having healthcare insurance and pray he or she doesn’t get seriously ill, fret over his or her lack of a retirement plan and/or savings account, despair over not being able to buy his or her children enough food or clothing, and wake up each morning to the reality that nothing is ever going to change until the powers-that-be sitting up there on Capitol Hill decide to do something that will actually make a positive difference in the lives of everyday, hardworking, Average-Joe and Josephine Americans.

Of course, that isn’t going to happen, so when you receive your rebate check of anywhere from $600 to $2100, remember to do what our leaders want and go shopping. Yes, get out there, my fellow Americans, and spend, spend, spend. And while you’re at it, try not to worry about next month’s bills.

As a final note, in case your wondering just how large a rebate check you personally can expect to find in your mailbox, below is a breakdown:

• Individual with $2, 500 earned income in 2007—disqualified
• Individual with one child, who earned $9,000 in 2007 but paid no taxes--$300 rebate, plus additional $300 for child (Question: How does one receive a rebate on taxes not paid?)
• Married couple with no children and adjusted gross income of $100,000 in 2007--$ 1,200 rebate (Question: What about couples with no children who earned less than $100,000?)
• Couple with income of $145,000 in 2007, with three children--$1,200 rebate, plus $300 for each child
• Couple with income of $160,000 in 2007, with two children—partial rebate, reduced by 5 percent for each $1,000 over $150,000 ($900 rebate)
• Couple with income of $200,000 in 2007and four children—disqualified

 (The Advocate, 2008)

Taylor, A. & Hirschfeld-Davis, J. “Rebates by May: Lawmakers Hope Plan Stimulates Economy;” Associated Press; The Advocate; January 25, 200;. p. A1