Standing in a Bucket

As I ponder the pork of the "stimulus package," I am pleased with the House Republicans and their strong, unanimous stand against it. There are billions of dollars of nonsense piggy backed on a proposal that won't stimulate anything except local special interests of congressmen. I fear the burden that we are placing on our posterior and am reminded of the ineffectiveness of the first bail out. I see the tax cuts of the Bush administration expiring and new taxes on the way to pay for all this socialism. My mind recaptures a quote from my favorite European, Sir Winston Churchill:

"We contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle."

I contend that for a government to try to tax and spend itself into a growing economy is like a ponzi scheme that will be exposed to the next generation.

Cheaters Never Win...Tell that to Timothy Geithner

The Magic 8-ball says it seems likely that the 47 year old New York Fed chief will be confirmed as Obama's Treasury Secretary tonight. Cheaters never win and winners never cheat...except in D.C. We all know the story of the bright young man that didn't pay nearly $40k in taxes on money he earned working for the IMF. Might have been an honest mistake, you say, because the IMF is in fact international. How then do you explain his act of trying to deduct his kid's summer camp on itemized expenses? Or that he failed to pay his share of taxes for four straight years after signing off on paperwork from the IMF that clearly showed his obligations? Maybe the most significant question in all of this is, why him? What makes him so good that he is above the law? Are we saying to everyone that this man is the one and only that can turn this economy around? Are there not others out there that can perform the duties of this post?

Maybe he is the best man for the job. He may hold the keys to the economic engine that will get this thing moving forward again. But, he cheated. He lied to the IRS, the same agency that he will be in charge of. He acted in his own self interest at a time when our new President is touting service and working together. In my book, that disqualifies him from this post and President Obama should withdraw him from consideration. If he doesn't, how do we explain this one to our kids?