There’s $145 billion down the drain.

Well, not totally.  “Tax rebate” is always a nice phrase to hear.  The government’s heart is in the right place when it includes tax cuts, not spending, as part of an economic stimulus package.

But their minds aren’t.  The new economic stimulus package is the Republican equivalent of throwing money at the problem.

Besides, if tax rebates stimulate the economy, why not just have really low taxes all the time?  It’s not as if tax cuts are a national oil reserve and are only for emergencies.  That’s crazy.  Tax cuts are a renewable resource.

If we’re going to allow more money into the hands of the same people who caused the very recession we’re supposed to be in, how is giving them tax rebates going to help?  That’s the solution?  Cut a check to Americans?

According to Scott Ott, those in power like Nancy Pelosi and George W. Bush need to brush up on their economic fundamentals.  Think Adam Smith and the power of free markets.

Taxpayers don’t need rebates, they need permanently-lower taxes. Industries don’t need incentives and rapid write-downs of capital expenditures, they need permanently-lower taxes, a radically-simplified tax code, and deregulation. Corporate farms don’t need subsidies, they need free and fair markets. Government doesn’t need more revenue, it needs merciless downsizing and vigorous cost-cutting.

One principle I’ll add is this:  “The Mask” principle.  If you’ve seen “The Mask” with Jim Carrey, you’ll remember that the mask he finds gives him confidence and weird cartoon powers.  The only problem is, the mask reflects the inner desires of the person wearing it:  it can be used for good or bad.  So when Jim Carrey puts it on, he’s a fun-loving womanizer.  When the evil villain puts it on, he turns into Tito Ortiz.

New money often works that way, accentuating the problem or the prosperity.  Instead of cutting us a one-time tax rebate, how about the government just lowers our taxes and lets the free market bring consumer responsibility back where it belongs?

Government interference, even in the form of tax rebates, is just another way to meddle.  Why can’t we listen to Adam Smith and let the free market do its work?