Granby01033

That stimulus check that came with my tax return really helped out. I doubt like hell it stimulated the economy much since it all went to pay bills. For a stimulus to really work (and the reason tax cuts aren't great stimuli) is that the money has to get spent. People have to buy stuff, goods or services for the money to do its job helping the economy.

As much as another stimulus check would help me out, I think Robert Reich knows best. He's worried that Congress will throw good money after bad and send out more checks to people who won't spend them in a stimulating fashion. What does he suggest? Extend unemployment benefits. The unemployed may have bills, but they also have to buy things. And we don't need them defaulting on their mortgages.So far this year, nearly a million jobs have been lost in the private sector. The official unemployment rate for September was 6.1 percent. But the Labor Department's most comprehensive measure -- which includes people who want work but have stopped looking because they can't find it and those working part time who want full-time jobs -- is 11.0 percent, its highest rate in 14 years. This coming Friday, we'll find out what happened in October. Very likely, these rates will be higher.

More than 1 in every 5 people out of work the unemployed have been looking for six months or more. And many are running out of unemployment benefits. The National Employment Law Project estimates nearly 800,000 will run out this month. And another 350,000 in November and December. That means they won't be able to pay their bills, including their mortgages. Already this year, almost half of mortgage delinquencies have been caused by homeowners' lacking of income or employment.

--Mb