Wednesday Wisdom (there's none in Washington)

My nephew featured this on his blog, and I know he won't sue me for plagiarism if I share the same information here. He asked a very sensible question, and after going through the massive expenditures listed here, I couldn't find the answer. Can you?

How does this benefit unemployment for anyone other than those in the government sector?

The final $787 billion version signed by President Obama on February 17, 2009 includes the following:


Department of Defense facilities
$4.2 billion to repair and modernize Department of Defense facilities
$1.3 billion for medical care for service members and their families
$890 million to improve housing for service members
$240 million for new child development centers
$150 million for the construction of state extended-care facilities
$150 million for an increase of claims processing staff
$100 million to improve facilities of the National Guard

Education
$15.6 billion to increase Pell Grants by $500 to $5,350
$13 billion for low-income public schoolchildren
$12.2 billion for IDEA special education
$2.1 billion for Head Start
$2 billion for childcare services
$650 million for educational technology
$300 million for increased teacher salaries
$250 million for states to analyze student performance
$200 million to support working college students
$70 million for the education of homeless children

Energy
$11 billion funding for an electric smart grid
$6.3 billion for state and local governments to make investments in energy efficiency
$6 billion for renewable energy power generation loans
$5 billion for weatherizing modest-income homes
$4.5 billion for state and local governments to increase energy efficiency in federal buildings
$3.4 billion for carbon capture experiments
$2.5 billion for energy efficiency research
$2 billion for car battery research
$500 million for training of green-collar workers
$400 million for electric vehicle technologies
$300 million to buy energy efficient appliances
$300 million for reducing diesel fuel emissions
$300 million for state and local governments to purchase energy efficient vehicles
$250 million to increase energy efficiency in low-income housing

Environmental cleanup
$6 billion for the cleanup of radioactive waste
$600 million to cleanup hazardous waste that threaten health and the environment
$200 million to cleanup petroleum leaks from underground storage tanks
$100 million to evaluate and cleanup brownfield land

Government technology improvements
$500 million to update the computer center at the Social Security Administration
$290 million to upgrade IT platforms at the State Department
$50 million for IT improvements at the Farm Service Agency
$24 million to improve security systems at the Department of Agriculture headquarters

Healthcare
$19 billion for health information technology
$2 billion for Community Health Centers
$1.1 billion to research the effectiveness of certain healthcare treatments
$1 billion to fight preventable chronic diseases
$500 million to train healthcare personnel
$500 million for healthcare services on indian reservations

Housing
$4 billion for repairing and modernizing public housing
$2.25 billion in tax credits for financing low-income housing construction
$2 billion for Section 8 housing rental assistance
$2 billion to help communities purchase and repair foreclosed housing
$1.5 billion for rental assistance and housing relocation
$510 million for the rehabilitation of Native American housing
$200 million for helping rural Americans buy homes
$130 million for rural community facilities
$100 million to help remove lead paint from public housing

Hunger assistance
$19.9 billion for the Food Stamp Program
$150 million to help refill food banks
$100 million for meals programs for seniors, such as Meals on Wheels
$100 million for free school lunch programs

Job assistance
$3.95 billion for job training
$500 million for vocational training for the disabled
$400 million for employment services
$120 million for subsidized community service jobs for older Americans

Other infrastructure projects
$4.6 billion for the Army Corps of Engineers for environmental restoration, flood protection, hydropower, and navigation infrastructure projects
$4 billion for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (wastewater treatment infrastructure improvements)
$2 billion for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (drinking water infrastructure improvements)
$1.38 billion for rural drinking water and waste disposal projects
$1 billion to the Bureau of Reclamation for drinking water projects for rural or drought-likely areas
$750 million to the National Park Service
$650 million to the Forest Service
$515 million for wildfire prevention projects
$500 million for Bureau of Indian Affairs infrastructure projects
$340 million to the Natural Resources Conservation Service for watershed infrastructure projects
$320 million to the Bureau of Land Management
$280 million for National Wildlife Refuges
$280 million for the National Fish Hatchery System
$250 million to improve Job Corps training facilities
$220 million to the International Boundary and Water Commission to repair flood control systems along the Rio Grande
$220 million for other public lands management agencies
$50 million for the National Endowment for the Arts to support artists

Other job programs
$4 billion for state and local law enforcement agencies
$1 billion in preparation for the 2010 census
$210 million to build and upgrade fire stations
$150 million for the security of transit systems
$150 million for the security of ports

Other worker assistance programs
$4.2 billion to provide an additional Social Security payment in 2009
$1 billion to community action agencies
$1 billion for community and economic developement projects
$500 million to help the Social Security Administration process disability and retirement claims
$200 million for AmeriCorps programs
$140 million for independent living communities
$100 million for food, shelter and support services
$80 million to the Department of Labor Worker Protection and Oversight agency to enforce worker protection laws
$50 million in grants for community "safety net" organizations

Scientific research
$8.7 billion to the National Institutes of Health
$3 billion to the National Science Foundation
$2 billion to the United States Department of Energy
$1.3 billion for university research facilities
$1 billion to NASA
$600 million to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
$580 million to the National Institute of Standards and Technology
$230 million for NOAA operations, research and facilities
$140 million to the United States Geological Survey

Telecommunications and Digital TV
$7.2 billion for complete broadband and wireless Internet access
$650 million for DTV conversion coupons and DTV education

Transportation projects
$27.5 billion for highway and bridge construction projects
$8 billion for high-speed rail projects
$6.9 billion for new equipment for public transportation projects
$1.5 billion for competitive grants to state and local governments for transportation investments
$1.3 billion for Amtrak
$1.1 billion for improving airport security
$750 million for the construction of new public rail transportation systems
$750 million for the maintenance of existing public transportation systems
$720 million for improving security at the border and ports of entry
$240 million for the maintenance of United States Coast Guard facilities

Veterans Affairs facilities
$1 billion for the Veterans Health Administration
$50 million for the National Cemetery Administration

And I just watched his speech for rescuing home owners. One of the stipulations is that you MUST be current on your payments. Wouldn't you suppose that most in need of rescuing aren't???? Ladies and Gentlemen...we've elected a massive bunch of idiots who don't know how to focus on the most important issues at hand. We're trying to rescue everything in the world without addressing the most important issue. People NEED jobs. Well, I don't know about you, but I feel so much better knowing we've ear-marked money for the 2010 census...then we'll really know how many people are unemployed.

I'm Definitely Going to Stop Watching The News

I'd barely finished the post on closing "Gitmo," when I read the 'socialistic' views being shared by Obama's Economic Adviser, Robert Reich. I realize we are in dire straights and sorely in need of rescuing, and I don't have an inkling how to stop all the businesses closing, the failing real estate market, and the extreme loss of jobs in this country. I do however, think that an Economic Adviser should limit his opinions to money issues and not delve into areas where he isn't qualified...at least in matters that involve employment.

Here's only part of a transcript from Mr. Reich's recommendations: (Source,http://michellemalkin.com/2009/01/22/robert-reich-keep-stimulus-money-away-from-skilled-workers-and-white-male-contractors/)

"People can be trained relatively quickly for these sorts of jobs, as well as many infrastructure jobs generated by the stimulus — installing new pipes for water and sewage systems, repairing and upgrading equipment, basic construction — but contractors have to be nudged both to provide the training and to do the hiring.

I’d suggest that all contracts entered into with stimulus funds require contractors to provide at least 20 percent of jobs to the long-term unemployed and to people with incomes at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level. And at least 2 percent of project funds should be allocated to such training. In addition, advantage should be taken of buildings trades apprenticeships — which must be fully available to women and minorities."

NOW...here's the good part:

REICH: …”I am concerned, as I’m sure many of you are, that these jobs not simply go to high-skilled people who are already professionals or to white male construction workers…I have nothing against white male construction workers, I’m just saying there are other people who have needs as well.”

Now bear in mind that he's discussing the retrofitting of bridges, buildings, and roadways. I'm all for offering positions to women and minorities as well as other unemployed people, but there are many of these so-called professionals who are also sitting on the sidelines, with no paychecks, and they've worked many years to gain the status they've achieved. So now, because they've reached a level that can be considered professional, we're going to punish them? There have to be better places to even up the playing field. I don't know about you, but if I drive my car across a bridge or take an elevator up to the 55th floor of a building, I'm more concerned that the person who did the repair work was highly trained more than I am about the color of their skin or their gender. Is it just me or has everyone lost their minds????