Good and Bad Stimulus

In financial circles, there's the concept of "good debt" and "bad debt". Good debt are those liabilities one takes on, when necessary, to purchase appreciable assets. After paying the debt down, you stand an excellent chance of being better off than you were before. Bad debt is credit which you assume to buy a depreciating asset such as a car or refigerator. Bad debt should be paid off as quickly as possibly as it drags you down financially,


I think there is such a thing as "good stimulus" and "bad stimulus", too, and it bothers me that policy-makers don't seem to grasp this all-important nuance. Throwing dollars at temporary giveaways is bad stimulus. Based on economist's grade of our last stimulus - that it did more harm than good - we must conclude that it largely consisted of the bad variety.


So, if we must pour federal dollars (i.e. the people's dollars) into the economy, let's at least make sure it's "good stimulus". Let's train and hire the engineers and teams to build new bridges, levees, harbors, cross-country trains, and nuclear reactors.


We will continue to encounter new and frightening economic "bubbles" without the creation of American jobs which drive personal wealth. We must lead, without apology or angst.