Bailing Out of the Bailout

Paul, Yes, things are a mess. Yes, our freedoms and market institutions are in peril. BUT, only a few have crediblity to complain because oh so few ever complained during the last eight years. We are at the gates of hell because of irresponsible leadership, irresponsible oversight by our own kind (including Rush Limbaugh), and frankly, mindless partisanship. Why should anyone listen to us, now?

First, I suggest not all Republicans can be blamed for the idiocies of those who were the spenders. We have some in Congress who were not part of that goofy mess. In addition, some (very few unfortunately), have repented & have taken on the fiscal conservative banner. They have much to live down.
Still, we all know we must do something. What bothers me is we did something, in haste. And what was done, was ultra expensive. Worse is that even the Congressional Budget Office has warned what we did may not stimulate the economy & even after we recover, the inflationary costs will stall real productivity or growth, for years to come. So, what have we gained but, bigger debt?!
One indicator to me that this stimulus is some sort of social engineering, rather than a “responsible” recovery plan, is there are elements in it that are “mandatory,” and some are “ongoing.” Why would we enact unfunded (because after the stimulus money runs out, any ongoing mandate will be ‘unfunded'”) mandates that go on forever? And why are they mandates? Why must states be required to enact them or accept them as ongoing mandates? Why can’t a state decide on its own, what they will do after the stimulus money runs out?
We already know there are huge sums dedicated to organizations & efforts that have almost nothing to do w/ stimulus & everything to do w/ social action. Allocating money to ACORN, directly or indirectly, seems a waste. lets face it, many of the lending policies ACORN championed, are responsible for our current mess. If ACORN had not pressured members of Congress in their lobbying efforts (efforts probably funded w/ taxpayers funds I might add), we may not be in the situation where we must deal w/ numerous loans that are in default, which should never have been made in the first place.
In addition, how many of these stimulus programs that are mandated & ongoing, can we ever get out of? Are they permanent extensions of the government, whether state or federal? Can we exit them? Can we say, no federal money, no program? Can we say, after economic recovery takes hold, even if there is money for the programs, the state has decided they no longer wish it to exist so, its over!?
As for Rush Limbaugh… he is simply the tool the left is “using” to attack conservatives or Republicans. (The two are not necessarily the same. Just look at Bush, he was NOT a conservative!)
The left wants the Fairness Doctrine or something they now call “Media Diversity,” to rule the airwaves. That is scary. It means a council or board, will dictate community standards, & decide who can broadcast, how, how often, how long, what counter broadcasting is required to present balance, etc.
Lets face it, that means the federal government wants to establish community censor boards who will make determinations on broadcasting for our radio stations. (Notice TV seems to be excluded from this despite the lefts stranglehold on NBC, ABC, CBS, MSNBC, CNN, NPR, etc. Why is that? Makes ya think, huh?)
Censorship in this form & almost any other I can think of, becomes a very dangerous tool for nefarious political motivations that unscrupulous participants could exploit for their own gain or the gain of whomever they are in employ or thrall to!
No censorship through diversity, or any other ploy. These restrictions have but one purpose & that purpose to to propagandize the messages we receive & to control the information we receive so these boards can tailor what we hear to the messages they want us to hear & no other!