REALLY? Cash for Clunkers

Well I just overheard CNN tell me that "Cash for Clunkers" was established to be "my piece of the bail out". (Apparently the news got wind that I was looking for a piece.) Unfortunately I don't have a clunker to trade in. So I can't really see how a penny of this $3 billion will benefit me. I pay to ride the metro every day to save the planet, and believe me, that's a different blog post in and of itself. Only we haven't turned to the "things we hate theme"...... yet. One day the blog will go negative. And it will either be politics or the metro that takes it there. Maybe I just made that jump.

I realize this is only one of my selfish attitudes. But so far Pottery Barn hasn't been giving anything away, and Saks won't put my WHITE summer dress on sale. I mean it's August. It's time to be on sale. Who is buying a full price white dress in August? There are only 28 more wearable days. If we had only stopped paying our mortgage, it would have been paid for us? And then I could buy matching shoes.

The news anchor did say "But remember, it's your responsibility to bargain with the car sales person to get a price that works for you. Car payments are often $500 a month, so you need to make sure this is in your budget." Again, nothing in life is free. And good for people who are able to go from no car payment to $500 a month. Mac reminds me that these people are the ones stimulating the economy, but to me they too are living the high life, thanks to the government. Who is currently in recess. What are they 5 years old? I remember recess. I was best friends with Kristina. She was really good at soccer. I wasn't, but somehow association made me OK.

They say that there is a lot of red tape, that cash for clunkers is a lengthy process. Apparently they can go through $1 B in about a month. When I worked for the government it took the whole year to try to justify getting $2 B to give away to little kids dying of HIV. I know the car industry was down in the dumps. Believe me, I drove to Detroit. But when Lehman Brothers collapsed it sold its parts. Capitalism can prevail. Our pastor said the downside to capitalism is exploitation. So I get that no government is perfect. But I think we're stuck with an issue the government just can't fix, no matter how hard it tries.

Americans need a heart change--no one is entitled (No one owes me a dress), life is not fair (I don't deserve the dress), and we all keep looking for something on earth that will bring real hope and real change (sigh, like a perfect summer dress?). To "fix" the environment the world needs a heart change. Do we commit to cleaning our part of the planet, which is connected to every other part, because there are more important things in life than money? Does the US need to remain economically strong to be safe? As a young nation did we become prosperous because we entered into wars at the end and now we start them? Was that our way of saying that there is something greater than money?

For now, the government will continue to throw our money at the "problem". I guess it's our responsibility to keep throwing what we have left at missions. A different kind of bail out.

And maybe I'll still get my dress. To help the economy of course.