Where Your Rebate Check Goes
By Barry Ritholtz - June 6th, 2008, 4:00PM
Our Friday afternoon digression comes via Mark Faber’s Doom, Gloom & Boom report, this has to be the funniest thing I’ve read all week:
>
"The federal government is sending
each of us a $600 rebate. If we spend that money at Wal-Mart, the money goes to
China. If we spend it on gasoline it goes to the Arabs. If we buy a computer it
will go to India. If we purchase fruit and vegetables it will go to Mexico,
Honduras and Guatemala. If we purchase a good car it will go to Germany. If we
purchase useless crap it will go to Taiwan and none of it will help the American
economy.The only way to keep that money here at home is to spend it on
prostitutes and beer, since these are the only products still produced in US.
I’ve been doing my part, and I thank you for your help"!>
-Eliot Spitzer
(former Governor, New York)
June 6th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
Of all the great posts and all the great comments i read here, this is the kind of stuff i usually end up emailing to everyone i know.
June 6th, 2008 at 5:26 pm
Tobacco. He forgot tobacco. Prostitutes, Beer and Tobacco. Way to go.
June 6th, 2008 at 5:30 pm
Hate to tell you Barry, but Farber’s bit was posted on Roubini’s blog back in April (not by Farber), with a slightly different ending, viz:
We need to keep that money here in America .
The only way to keep that money here at home is to spend it at
Yard Sales , since those are the only businesses left owned by Americans !!
June 6th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
…but Spitzer spent more than $600, now he’s in debt!
June 6th, 2008 at 5:39 pm
Heh. Nice rationalization. Should win over even the most skeptical wife or girlfriend.
I’ll take a chance on responding to a joke with a serious suggestion: find out if your area has any community supported agriculture (CSA) operations and sign up for one.
A GBIS (Google-brand internet search) will explain the concept and how to find CSA in your area, but the quickie version is this: you pay $XX per period (usually weekly or every other week) and pick up a box of fresh produce every period. All seasonal, all local, typically organic.
Some of your money will still go to Mexico and the Middle East, but you will get great-tasting produce, a reason to start eating a lot more fruits and veggies than you have been, a chance to try some things you don’t ordinarily buy, and a lot of warm fuzzy feelings.
CSAs often let you subscribe for a short trial period.
Price to value is very good – a little better than a Farmer’s Market and a far sight better than Whole Foods – and the quality will occasionally knock your socks off.
June 6th, 2008 at 5:50 pm
“Tobacco. He forgot tobacco. Prostitutes, Beer and Tobacco. Way to go.”
Don’t forget gambling.
June 6th, 2008 at 6:17 pm
I made a similar analysis a couple months ago. My conclusion was that instead of cash, the gov’t should be giving out vouchers for free pizza ( to include previous comments, now I’ll add beer and coke ). Most of it goes to the midwest for flour, WI for cheese and of course the local pizza joint. There are longer term benefits too – anyone that eats their $600 worth of pizza will help reduce Social Security payouts later on. I call that a win-win!
June 6th, 2008 at 6:19 pm
and guns. Or not even them?
June 6th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
Ottnott, thanks for the information, I found a CSA in my area and will check them out.
BR, that earned a solid guffaw from me and I passed it on. However with InBev & Unibroue’s invasions, even Beer won’t be very American (or Canadian) for long. Thanks much.
June 6th, 2008 at 6:36 pm
Realistically speaking, India does not make computers, hence if you buy computers that will goto China and Taiwan
June 6th, 2008 at 6:42 pm
Or you could buy some Wamu or WB and watch it just go up in smoke…
June 6th, 2008 at 7:02 pm
I wonder how much longer it will take before the tremendous push by immigrants (to get into this Country) disappears once they realize that things here are no longer like they were years ago and instead choose to stay at home.
We have all been sold down the river and as usual not a single enabler will ever admit they had a damn thing to do with it.
We are in a sorry state of affairs in this Country. It’s social, ethical, financial, political and moral. We have lost all of these.
June 6th, 2008 at 7:26 pm
That is crazy. Why you care about where the things are made. Yes. Nike shoes are made in China. But less than 5 dollars of your 50$ on one pair goes to China. Their net profits are less than 20 cents. And then they loaned the half of 5 dollars at a negitive interest rate to you. Our cusumers are smart. They are taking advantage of the double rip-off. With a good safty net, we can afford to fail.
True. They take some of our jobs. But they are the jobs you shall not do it. You can focus on the high margin business like design, research, quality control, management, and finacial …
If you can not do any of those, go back to school! You are not going to make toys, simple products, eletronic … period.
Work smart. The globe is changing. Take advantage of it.
June 6th, 2008 at 8:01 pm
BG:
At the rate they pollute, they’ll soon be able to emigrate just by walking across the ocean.
June 6th, 2008 at 8:01 pm
He forgot methamphetamines. Crank is proudly made in the USA!
June 6th, 2008 at 9:08 pm
But the best prostitutes are from Russia and East European countries, just ask Spitzer, the ones worth paying for anyway. Most homegrown U.S. prostitutes seem to be crack hores.
June 6th, 2008 at 9:10 pm
But the best prostitutes are from Russia and East European countries, just ask Spitzer, the ones worth paying for anyway. Most homegrown U.S. prostitutes seem to be crack hores.
June 6th, 2008 at 9:45 pm
OMG soooo funny! And where do the prostitutes spend their money?
June 6th, 2008 at 9:46 pm
Lots of goood quality firearms are still made in the USA.
Just FYI, for all you nicey-nice metrosexuals.
June 6th, 2008 at 11:51 pm
Was this drop liquidity driven?
It is the day after June 5.
http://thisjune5th.com/
June 7th, 2008 at 1:22 am
Thanks, ottnot. I’ll give it a shot.
Henry, foreigners are smarter every day. They can research and design, too.
June 7th, 2008 at 7:10 am
I think these rebate checks are just a bandaid-and a small one at that. Oil is at $139 a barrel. The US economy has problems. Inflation, interest rates are on their way up-because of inflation. And the Fed has no good opinions. Their between a rock and a hard place. I think in ten years-the Euro zone central bank will look like they have done the best job.
June 7th, 2008 at 8:34 am
Thats such a dumb quote. Regardless whether you think free trade is good or not, America is still the #2 or #3 manufacturer in the world. And the only countries that are above us are India and China (Actually, I am not even sure if India is above us). And they SHOULD produce more given the fact that they have 3-5x as many people as us.
Anyway, this is all such simplified thinking. Besides the fact that we are like #2 or #3 in the world in manufacturing, why shouldn’t people be able to make things whereever and whenever they want to. By what right will you stop them? And whats your solution? Tariffs? There is an ingenious idea. Sure has worked in the past hasn’t it?
June 7th, 2008 at 9:38 am
Support your local brewery.
Try: Goose Island, Rogue, Three Floyds, Bells… Sam Adams and Anchor Steam included, but Budweiser? Yuch. No way, but I will stick with one of the many fine crafted beers or ales from the good ole US of A (Not quite the quality level in Belgium, but maybe one day…) Stop the Bud Lite madness.
June 7th, 2008 at 10:01 am
I’m screwed….my hooker is a Latina and probably sends some of that loot home…and I drink Belgian Beer….
June 7th, 2008 at 10:47 am
Truly LOL
June 7th, 2008 at 1:05 pm
“where do the crack whores spend their money?”
ON CRACK SILLY! From COLUMBIA!
June 8th, 2008 at 1:45 pm
I spent mine in a new Aimpoint COMPM4s.
Strictly for social work mind you.
June 9th, 2008 at 5:35 am
What about supporting the most valuable agricultural crop in the country, good ole dope?
Of course it wouldn’t be worth marketing were it NOT ILLEGAL.
Gotta be a lesson there, similar to that which should be taken from the Iraq fiasco, that it is cheaper to buy oil than try to steal it.