Other Voices, Other Blegs
We try to pretend we’re not actually human sometimes. And sometimes we have to decide not to pretend.
Many of the Life Cycle Theory models for economics assume limited borrowing constraints: you can’t borrow more than you will make (present valued), but you can borrow on future earnings.
You can only do that for so long until the projections start shifting and you hit a constraint even in a perfect modelworld.
This isn’t a perfect world. Four people who have recently hit constraints: Diane, Roy, Gary, and Lance. That’s probably in reverse order of need at the moment: people came through well for Diane over the weekend, and Roy has a wide audience.
So hit Lance’s tip jar if you can only hit one.
But remember: one of the things that happened in NYC after 11 September 2001 is that people started giving blood. People who didn’t normally give were donating; the place I usually give at was suddenly booked.
You know what happened next. Blood, unlike money, isn’t fungible or transferable. Six months later, there were shortages again.
If you can’t hit the tip jars now, but have a windfall later and are thinking about paying it forward: go read their blogs, and be ready for the next time. They don’t do what we do, but life isn’t only economics.
In the midst of the recovery, we need to give chances to as many starfish as we can.
And if, by chance, you are one of those starfish who needs help right now, Gary’s post here may be useful.
Or if you know of someone else who is in dire straights, mention it in comments (or send me an e-mail) so it can be added to this post.
This is where I brag. I have seven, four upstairs, one down in the basement, and two out at the farm. I’m a damn welfare agency. What is infuriating is the transaction costs of going through the country bureaucracy to get these folks help. I do it at a tenth the cost, but collectively the net result doesn’t quite meet the property taxes, which is devoted 50% to payments to county pensions with all these guarantees!. And the retired county retirees are all around town, with plenty of cash.
Robbing Peter to pay Paul, writing checks your ass can’t cover, isn’t this what Government is all about? These are the lessons that have been taught to the masses. Haven’t the foggest idea of hot to change it, other than pulling the plug on the Merry go round.
People keep trying to compare the government to a household. Let’s face it, fokls, government finance isn’t family finance, it is more like business finance. You borrow money to do business sorts of things. Your credit limit goes up as you build up your business. You borrow more money or less as needed, based on projections from the mucky-muck finacne people. This is different from a family, where you dont borrow money in order to expand, and you pay your mortgage in order to stay in your home, blah blah blah.
I wish right-wing knuckle-heads would stop trying to compare government finacnes to household finances, it is so stupid and brainless.
eople keep trying to compare the government to a household. Let’s face it, folks, government finance isn’t family finance, it is more like business finance. You borrow money to do business sorts of things. Your credit limit goes up as you build up your business. You borrow more money or less as needed, based on projections from the mucky-muck finance people. This is different from a family, where you don’t borrow money in order to expand, and you pay your mortgage in order to stay in your home, blah blah blah.
I wish right-wing knuckle-heads would stop trying to compare government finances to household finances, it is so stupid and brainless.
Today, 8:34:28 AM – Flag – Like – Reply – Delete – Edit – Moderate
Calolannie,
you are referring to a persistent logical fallacy, that of composition — you might like the attached:
i Teaching the Fallacy of Composition: The Federal Budget Deficit by L. Randall Wray (via CFEPS)
yeah~i think i agree with you~
yes~you said was right~
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