If you regularly watch or read interviews with Peter Schiff, you'll know he has long predicted a 'dough-for-dumps' program. Like many of the other successes he's had in forecasting the economic situation we are in, it appears his dough-for-dumps scenario may be realized to an extent. Expect to see it announced next week by the President.
...the economy still needs help. So White House officials are looking at creating a new version of cash for clunkers — this time for home weatherization.
John Doerr, the Silicon Valley venture capitalist, and former President Bill Clinton have separately suggested versions of the idea to the White House. Mr. Doerr calls his proposal, which would give households money to pay for weatherization projects, “cash for caulkers.” Rahm Emanuel, President Obama’s chief of staff, told me, “It’s one of the top things he’s looking at.”
While the Cash for Clunkers program spent a total of around $3 billion; or $24,500 per car, the Doerr plan would cost $23 billion over two years. That $23 billion would be well spent according to the author of the editorialized article, David Leonhardt:
Done right, cash for caulkers would be precisely the kind of stimulus that makes the most sense: spending money now to save money later.
Perhaps you can help me attempt to educate Mr. Leonhardt and others on the simple economic theory of the broken window fallacy by posting it on your facebook and twitter feeds?
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