May 5, 2008

How are you spending your Incumbent Insurance Check?

The check is in the mail.

It’s the Incumbent Insurance Check, otherwise known as an Economic Stimulus Check from Uncle Sam, courtesy of your friends in Congress who happen to want to get re-elected. Can’t call it a tax rebate check — although some have — since even those who didn’t pay taxes received them.

Perhaps you’ve received the email: “How to Use Your Rebate Check.” Two different friends have forwarded it this past week.

“If you spend it at Walmart,” it begins, “all the money will go to China.” (Whatever happened to those commercials they used to run about “buying American?”)

“If you spend it on gas, it will go to the Arabs.” ... or the Venezualians or to Mexico ... or even worse, (at least in politician's eyes) to Exxon stockholders!

Spending your Economic Stimulus check on a computer will send your money to India; buy a car and it will go to Japan or Korea, the message continues.

“We need to keep that money in America,” the message concludes. “So spend it at yard sales since those are they only businesses still in the US!”

Like many jokes, particularly those floating around the internet, there is some truth involved but they do exaggerate a bit.

But fear not, Blufftonites are ahead of the curve once again, as evidenced by last weekend’s city-wide garage sales. It’s grown to be quite an annual event with more than a few parking complaints on the police log, and this entry from Saturday morning:

Saturday, 10:31 a.m., officer requested at Willowbrook Addition for heavy traffic congestion. The officer that arrived reported that there was so much congestion in the addition due to the town-wide garage sale, that there was nothing he could do about it.

Now, my diabolical mind thought, perhaps these good people in Willowbrook know what it’s like for downtown businesses during Street Fair Week. But our traffic jam lasts a full week though, not just a day or so.

And speaking of the Street Fair, you might save your “rebate” check for that event - another business that is uniquely American.

by MARK MILLER

Email Mark Miller

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