Gotta Gotta Get Me Some…Economic Stimulus

15 Apr 2008 Author: Cheryl Contee (Jill Tubman)

Today is Tax Day in the United States. I’m curious — how do you plan to use your economic stimulus package? My guess is that African-Americans are going to lean heavily on the bill-paying rather than the new iPhone-buying tip? Maybe I’m wrong though and we’ll all feel stimulated by this small amount of aid to ordinary folks struggling with higher food and gas prices. What do you think?

Tags: African-American

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Anonymous
McCain is proposing suspending the gas tax for the summer:
“I propose that the federal government suspend all taxes on gasoline now paid by the American people — from Memorial Day to Labor Day of this year. The effect will be an immediate economic stimulus — taking a few dollars off the price of a tank of gas every time a family, a farmer, or trucker stops to fill up. Over the same period, our government should suspend the purchase of oil for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which has also contributed to the rising price of oil. This measure, combined with the summer-long “gas-tax holiday,” will bring a timely reduction in the price of gasoline. And because the cost of gas affects the price of food, packaging, and just about everything else, these immediate steps will help to spread relief across the American economy.”
The tax is 18.7 cents a gallon!
While my family did not qualify for a stimulus check this would help us as my husband drives over 100 miles a day for his job, I’m a seemingly non-stop chauffeur for my kids and we insist our teenage driver pay for his own gas.
Anonymous
oops, 18.4 cents/gallon.
Admiral Komack
I’m paying bills with my loan check.
evita
Stimulus check for me is only $300. I paid the Federal Government this $286. It’s a wash for me so I don’t have any elaborate plans.
McCain’s idea of suspending the gas tax for the summer is nice idea. Hey I’m ok with saying a Republican had a nice idea!
The Christian Progressive Liberal
Jill:
What I feel about that “economic stimulus” package proposed by Bush is something I cannot repeat for human consumption. Ugh.
Especially since I owe taxes this year, and they’ll probably keep that lil check, anyway. I don’t understand using the paper and postage to send me a check, only to send me another letter telling me I won’t get the check because I owe taxes.
Is that some crazy stuff, or what???!!!
Kat
Wouldn’t the oil companies just bump up the price of gas to cover the lack of tax?
rikyrah
I just paid, for the first time, $60 to fill up the gas tank. I just stared at the pump. This is getting ridiculous. Do I go where I used to go? Hell no. If I don’t need to go somewhere, I wait to pack up all those errands together and string them together. Rarely a radom errand run for me these days.
Anonymous
Do not spend your stimulus check, either put it in the bank or bury it in the backyard.
MaxW
White Haired Women For Barack Obama:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpDTvlSd0x4&
this is why this election is historic and why we should fight.
MaxW
same link as above in HTML:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpDTvlSd0x4
Anonymous
rikyrah,
That’s conservation. The environment and Al Gore thank you.
Anonymous
kat,
Taxes add a significant amount to the price of motor fuel and vary widely by state. For the first quarter of 2008, the average state gasoline tax is 28.6 cents per gallon, plus 18.4 cents per gallon federal tax making the total 47 cents per gallon. For diesel, the average state tax is 29.2 cents per gallon plus an additional 24.4 cents per gallon federal tax making the total 53.6 cents per gallon.
Texas Girl in L.A.
Rikyrah,
I live in L.A. and we are paying $4.19. I may have to give up some sort of luxury…like food.
Anonymous
Not only will black folks be paying off bills, just about everyone else who gets a check will. And, this whole idea of a ‘stimulus” check is a joke, since, most of the money will end up in China and only make the deficit bigger when those who don’t pay bills flock to Wal-mart, K-mart and Targe’ and the economy will continue to tank. Not a good idea at all, but, typical Bush and out of touch Congress.
Lee Coles
A lot of people who earn 40K plus will save that joint- a lot who earn under 20K will spend it in one place.
Anderkoo
My wife’s organization, Boston Faith + Justice Network, is encouraging its members to either (a) use the check to pay off debts, or (b) donate the check to charity. Her organization’s been hosting Bible studies to examine the meaning of money and consumption, especially in light of global poverty (as an earlier post pointed out, 1/5 of the world live on $2 a day when food prices are going through the roof). An upshot of these Bible studies is a commitment to give to charity (as well as to spend money more justly, e.g. on fair trade items). And when they’ve worked with poorer folks, they find that the goal of giving to charity is a powerful incentive to get out of debt.
(We’ll be donating our check)
I do hope every Americans who gets a check will meditate or pray (as your wont) on the blessings we still have as the richest nation in the world — as unequal as some of those riches may be distributed — and consider the billions of people poorer than themselves before they decide what to do with that bounty.
Jonzee
Um…don’t shoot me.
But unfortunately, as someone who has volunteered to help working poor folk file taxes and get the EITC–there are a number of folks–particularly mom’s who got pregnant in their teenage years who always seemed to tell me about going to the mall.
Our job was to try to get them to put some money in the bank. Often a hard sell.
Shenita
I’m going to treat myself. I consider it a blessing through the mail and I shall do the Patriotic thing…and stimulate.

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