We're in a 1 in a 100 years global crisis, yet we're still haggling over public support

[Yavin4]

For reference, I am talking about the current debate over lowering the threshold for who qualifies for the $1400 stimulus check. See this this thread: https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142690581

This is what is causing me the most stress. We're not taking this crisis seriously enough as a nation. We're just not. We have public health officials scaring us about it almost every day, but our response is to endlessly debate over who is worthy for public support.

Let me clue everyone in. If we don't return to normal within the next 9 months or so, we will fall completely apart as a nation. We cannot continue like this for much longer. We do not have the public infrastructure in place to get us through this crisis, and this fight over who gets the $1400 is proof of this.

The $1400 is a pittance to what we will need to continue to live this, yet we cannot even come to a clean agreement about that.

[Laelth]

1. I share your frustration. k&r n/t

-Laelth

[world wide wally]

2. Not sending checks is a good way to alienate the middle class

[wendyb-NC]

3. That absolutely right.

It is inane to continue splitting hairs over it. It's time get on board and move the package out to be passed and signed by President Biden.

[lunatica]

4. I know exactly what you're talking about

What the other side and idiots simply don’t get is that the stimulus money is not some gift or reward. It is barely enough life support to keep a weak economic pulse limping along until we can get jobs going again.

Our economy can collapse if enough people fail economically. Even those people who have jobs and higher salaries would use the stimulus money to purchase things, which would keep the economy alive.

Damn! This just makes me want to break something!

[Ollie Garkie]

5. I have mixed feelings about a cap.

but, sure, those who dont need necessities can buy an iThingie or book a
weekend getaway all good for the economy.

[lunatica]

13. They can buy appliances, furniture, cars, and computers, etc.

It takes a lot of people to make all those things. They can also buy housing.

Thinking small is a problem which won’t help the economy. The stimulus is not some reward or gift. It’s vital to keep the economic engine running. People with less income will need the money to keep the wolves away, but it won’t guarantee their jobs by itself.

It’s just common sense, which, unfortunately millionaire Republicans don’t seem to have.

[SergeStorms]

6. When you have around 30% of Americans....

believing the whole thing is a hoax, it's hard to find traction for any sort of program to bring everything back close to normal. For that we have the former Divider in Chief to blame. A real president, like our current Commander in Chief, could have minimized the worst aspects of this pandemic. As it stands, Joe Biden is faced with a Herculean task to save our country's bacon.

[Mr.Bill]

7. I wish we could just cut off the pay checks

for every elected official in this country and freeze their bank accounts until they understand what the hell people are going through. Most of them are too disconnected from reality to understand what's happening to a large number of people in this country.

[Marie Marie]

10. Wouldn't that be great? Might open up a few eyes and hearts.

[Ace Rothstein]

8. I haven't been following too closely.

Why is there even a debate on a threshold for getting a check? Send one to everyone or the Republicans will beat us over the head with this next year that we don't care about the middle class.

[cstanleytech]

9. That is why we need a major infrastructure spending bill to repair what the Republicans

have let fall apart due to deliberate neglect.
That would put millions to work in this country at a time when jobs are in short supply and those people would then have money to spend which would then employee even more people as they spend it.

[freepotter]

15. Absolutely!

We should revive the CCC and WPA for a start. Those programs (and others) put thousands of people to work, improved our infrastructure, and went a long way to bringing us out of the Great Depression.

[marie999]

21. This problem with our infrastructure didn't start 4 years ago.

It has been decades that the federal government has not spent enough to fix our problems. As of 2018, we are 39th in the amount countries spend as a percentage of GDP.

[cstanleytech]

22. Yes, I am aware that it goes back decades due to the Republicans outright refusal

to correct the situation either deliberately with malicious intent or due to stupidity on their part.

[marie999]

23. What I don't understand is why are they against it

since they can put a lot of pork in the bill for their state.

[cstanleytech]

25. Maybe the issue is that they are afraid it will take away from all the pork they already funnel

into their states as well as to their big corporate donors?

[smirkymonkey]

11. Hear, hear!

It's ridiculous. The priorities of republican lawmakers are so far out of whack it isn't funny. People need help now, and we need to be more serious about ending this public health crisis instead of using it as a political wedge to pit people against one another. Talking to you, republicans!

[Yavin4]

18. Sadly, it's not just Republicans

See Joe Manchin.

[cstanleytech]

26. Actually it is just Republicans as Manchin is part of an extremely small number of such Democrats.

[KY_EnviroGuy]

12. Even more stressful for me is people's disregard for the lives of their fellow man....

by disregarding and even demeaning the advice of medical professionals on best safety practices relating to COVID-19. It's just as careless as firing a gun toward a crowd, then claiming you had nothing to do with the injuries and deaths.

Republicans will be republicans and bitch about government spending even in a national emergency (except for war) and people will suffer immensely from lack of money to pay rent and buy food. They get away with it because those that suffer have little or no public voice. One could have safely guessed they would do that before this debate. Oddly, they've never had a problem with massive spending on corporate welfare or the military.

But for anyone to blatantly refuse to comply with simple, inexpensive professional recommendations to protect the health of yourself and others by wearing a mask, social distancing and avoiding crowds in enclosed spaces is the height of moral corruption. If most people had followed the rules beginning one year ago, we wouldn't be having a debate about a financial support bill.

I never want to hear another Republican claim to be religious, claim to be the protectors of life, or the party of law and order again.

Along with their lies, their amoral, selfish, self-centered behavior needs to be called out every day on both public and social media with the loudest, most bold pronouncements money can buy......billboards, TV spots and social media ads are needed now.

President Biden and VP Harris and Dr. Fauci now own the bully pulpit. I hope they use it every day to reverse this deadly distortion of America's values that's saying "freedom" means we have the right to endanger others.

KY rant done........

Thanks for the post, Yavin4! Sorry for the long-winded disruption but like you, I am pissed.

[Irish_Dem]

14. They act like it is money out of their pockets. But it is our money.

Taxpayer money and the people desperately need it.

$1400 is a drop in the bucket for many Americans right now.
And the GOP acts like it is a fortune coming out of their secret bank accounts.

[Calculating]

16. We don't need the money so much as faster vaccination

Money isn't gonna get things back to normal, the only way we're ever getting back to normal is if the vaccine effort gets kicked into high gear and we actually get this shit done. The vaccination effort is taking an inexcusable amount of time. At the current rate we won't even have 50% of the public vaccinated by 2022.

[Yavin4]

17. Bingo!

We need to be focused on getting vaccines out and updating treatment. We're not a country with a robust public sector that can be activated to take care of people. Letting this thing go for another year will destroy us.

[Kaleva]

20. +1

[Kaleva]

19. Nothing that's posted here will have an impact on what threshold is decided.

I'm fine with whatever they decide. Be it $0 or the full $1400.

[Yavin4]

24. In the end, it really doesn't matter if it's $0, $1400, $2000, or $2500, or even $25000

We cannot sustain a nation of 330 million people with the public support infrastructure that we have if we have to continue with the quaratine and social distancing measures.

People will need a lot more than just a relief check. A lot more.

For example:

1. We will need to build a massive public WiFi and give every kid a laptop if we want the schools to remain closed.

2. We would also need to give people housing vouchers so that they can pay their rent.

3. We would need to give everyone some sort of UBI until the economy was back at full strength.

As a nation, we are not prepared to do ANY of these things. Not even close. There's no political consensus to do any of them EVEN WITHIN THE DEMOCRATIC party. See Joe Manchin.

If we do not get the virus under control and return back to normal within the next 6 to 7 months, our country will fall apart.

[marie999]

27. And even with all that, there also climate change.

We do not have much time to get the world to do what needs to be done. Much longer and we will be passed the point where we can stop it or even slow it down.