I am still trying to wrap my head around the wisdom behind the seemingly inevitable economic stimulus package. The administration and many leaders in Congress are proposing a combination of tax cuts and rebates to the tune of $150 billion dollars!?! Oh, so there’s a tax surplus in Washington of $150,000,000,000? I knew I was paying too much in taxes! Wait…what about the $9 trillion dollar national debt? Can the government really afford this even if it does hope to get some of the money back? ¹ Well, I am sure that the U.S. Treasury will take care of things just like they always do — by simply printing more money. Who cares about inflation when it feels good, right? Our cultural values are all about instant gratification and $1,600 per family or $800 for individuals will buy a lot of big screen televisions; thus 1) averting the impending entertainment drought caused by millions of analog TV’s being rendered useless by the FCC mandate that broadcasters go fully digital in 2009, and 2) propping up the profits of overseas electronics manufacturers (buy stock in LG, Samsung, Sony, and Vizio now). Remember, we have a global economy, so think of the stimulus package as being for the Chinese factory worker as much as it is for the average American.

However, if you already have a shiny new HDTV hanging on the wall or simply must have one before the Superbowl, then below are some suggestions for other things you can do with your stimulus package (when it finally arrives):

1. Pay off your debt (Americans carry nearly $10,000 in credit card debt)
2. Put it in savings (Americans save -0.5% of their disposable income)
3. Give it back (annual interest on national debt is over $2,755 per taxpayer ²)

Of course, keep in mind that improving your personal long term financial outlook goes against the government’s plan, which revolves around the so called “multiplier effect.” This is the economic theory “that an initial spending rise can lead to even greater increase in national income.” In other words, by dangling a carrot the government ³ hopes that its citizens will take a bite and continue to mirror its own irresponsible spending habits. No wonder we have such a hard time saying “no” to ourselves.

¹ If I recall correctly, the $200/$400 Technically speaking the $300/$500/$600 tax rebates of 2001 were deducted from any tax refunds that appeared on returns filed in the next year for the 2001 tax year (though they were generated by temporary tax cuts). One would assume that the proposed stimulus package of 2008 will work the same.

² $405 billion divided by an estimated 147 million wage earners.

³ Rather than spending your rebate you could instead donate it to the campaign of the only major party candidate running for president who supports sound long-term economic policies (just don’t tell him where you got the money).

The first of the 2007-08 NCAA Division I-A College Football bowl games starts this evening, so I thought it would be fun to once again share my predictions. This also happens to be my first college football blog post of the 2007 season. I normally write an entry or two in protest of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS), but a season of upsets that could not have been better scripted — opening with Appalachian State shocking Michigan and continuing until the closing week of the season when Pitt beat West Virginia in the Back Yard Brawl — has done all the talking necessary.

Below you will find my bowl picks in bold. I will highlight the winners and post scores as the games are completed. Click here to see last year’s results.

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Making the Planes Run On Time: Eerily reminds me of mass transit rhyming with “planes” and that guy from Italy who was famous for making them run on time.

Today only (Oct. 31) you can purchase a Reformation Study Bible (ESV) for just $15.17. Why that price? That would be the year Luther nailed his 95 theses to a Wittenberg church door. Since I already own this edition, I am personally holding out for the 500th anniversary in 2017.