iVillagers to Obama: Show Us the Money

September 24, 2009 by admin
Filed under: Beehive: The Buzz of the Day 
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After weeks of speculation, anxiety and a whole lot of rhetoric, it seemed that the huge stimulus package was the jump start needed to get the country’s financial health back on track. As President Obama addressed a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night, some wondered how quickly that relief might be seen. On the Conservative Parents message board, President Obama’s speech was met with a bit of skepticism.  

“My thought, when he laid out plan after plan of massive spending projects and then followed up with how he was going to cut the deficit, was ‘HOW???’ I just don’t see how he can say he’s going to spend all this money on top of the stimulus plan and still be able to cut the deficit. It just doesn’t seem possible.” — gal_lila

Ok, so you might expect a certain amount of resistance from those on the other side of the aisle, but confusion about the stimulus plan and wariness about Obama’s address also permeated the comments of those who were still hopeful. Moms from our September 2005 and March 2008 playgroups weighed in with their thoughts — and concerns — about the stimulus plan: 

“I was/am a huge Obama supporter … I think some stimulus to save certain jobs (police, teachers, etc)  is good, but I don’t think each family should get $400 per working parent and I don’t think that people who bought houses who shouldn’t have should be bailed out.” –doodlebug_home

“I find it very ironic that part of the current crisis was brought about by people (lenders and home buyers) who rushed to loan/borrow money without a proper understanding of what they were getting themselves into and what it meant, both for the immediate and for the future. But … the supposed fix is being done the exact same way: rushed through [without] being properly read and examined.” — sacake

“People were so easily swayed into believing they could have it all, with no thought of the long term. People did know this was going to collapse, and yet a blind eye was turned for profit.” –luvmybaby111

“I hated what Obama said last night. I loathe big government and want to see a free market correct itself but we are almost to the point of no return. I am not sad for myself but rather for my children who will get to pay for our mistakes. That is all I am going to say because I am so fired up about this issue! “ – lorraine_jmk

“I really believe he is going to do his best to make sure this country is truly great again. He is such a positive and motivational speaker. — mumzie2four

“He’s received a lot of flak lately for not being positive enough during this difficult economic time. I believe he has tried to turn that tone around. I do have to say I disagree with probably 98% of his *plan*.” — cl-joyleft2

In our Worker’s Comp and SSDI Support community jajadamom wonders just how the economic stimulus is going to help her family:

“How about the people who paid our bills on time and paid off our mortgages … we don’t get anything? I think $13 won’t go far when my husband’s hours were cut by 1 day.”

Others react:

“What about those of us that struggle to get our mortgage paid and we’re not behind in payments? And I haven’t heard anything about families. What about us single mothers? People are not going to pour this money back into the economy because their retirements are suffering. People will be thinking long term. What will we live off of when we do retire?” — honeygoddess2005

“If the bank was doing its job they wouldn’t have issued high-risk loans. I get furious that we have to pick up the pieces of these huge banks for taking such horrible risk.” — cl-phillymawmaw

It seems that while many want to be hopeful about financial recovery, there is still a lot of confusion and even anger about the situation — and the proposed solutions. Let’s just hope we don’t have to prove our understanding of economic theory to get a piece of the pie. 

Of course, this is just one sliver from all of the comments out there. What are your thoughts following the president’s Tuesday night address? How do you think the stimulus will affect you or your community? Or do you think it’s the right approach. Sound off here and share your reactions.  

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