A sensible bailout plan

It seems to me that whenever the government sees something needs doing, an agency is created or mandated to do the task. If the task is completed, then I have no issue with it. Witness FEMA, an agency that at best puts people from one state to work "helping" those in an other state who have had the daylight whooped out of them by one sort of natural disaster or another. In theory this is a 'good thing', but how many Americans know we keep begging FEMA funding even now and get told yes?


Ifyou've read my post to Colts fans, you'll know that I am an expat New Orleanian. What you don't know is that I am also a Gulf Coast resident. My beef with FEMA isn't that they took too long to get here. Anyone with even half of a functioning brain cell knows that clearing roads to get in takes time, especially when those poor benighted National Guardsmen have to carry EVERYTHING they need, plus everything we needed. (Thank you again ladies and gentlemen of the Guard!)

My beef with FEMA is that they're still a presence here because we're still asking for help for post Katrina. Does anyone even know how much we've spent on just Katrina? I doubt even the GAO could tell us, and they've got the ledgers, though not enough fingers and toes to count how many billions. Last count -in 2007 mind you! - 116 billion plus dollars.Even now, much of that money is unaccounted for.

That should sound familiar to all of us. Where on earth did all of that money in the recession bailout go? The arrangements for the bailout were instituted by the Fed, ostensibly not part of the government. The monies were promptly delivered into the gaping maw of those who created the recession.

The solution to both situations was simple, and could have saved boatloads of money. For Katrina relief : Cut each household in the affected area a check for one million dollars, with the caveat that no more money is coming. Stay and rebuild, relocate, do as you wish, just don't look for anymore money from us.

For recession relief: the same. Pay off your mortgages, start a new business, invest it, hide it under your mattress, just don't ask us for anything else.

Now, ultimately the money would have wormed it's way back to the banks, but it would have been by our choosing.