[fintstone]

Originally Posted by jyl

I agree. Things are so concentrated bad in certain industries and demographics, and so perfectly fine in many others, that they need to focus financial help on the small businesses that are about to fail, the people who are going to food banks for the first time in their lives, the renters who haven’t been able to pay and the small landlords who haven’t been paid in six months. Throwing money at people who don’t need it and don’t have a whole lot of propensity or even opportunity to spend it is a waste. I get that some think it’s “fairer” if everyone gets the money, but is it so hard to understand that some people have been hammered much worse by the pandemic than everyone else - like, the government literally shut down their business or their job, through no fault of their own? When a natural disaster brings aid to one area, people unaffected by the flood or earthquake or wildfire shouldn’t complain that they’re not getting aid. I’m not sitting here griping that I’m not getting money, I’m thankful that I don’t need it and hoping that those who do get enough to keep them housed and fed.

Agreed. A good small-business program would be helpful.

Unfortunately, everyone did not get money from this or previous "stimulus" bills...so less a true stimulus bill and more a welfare/wealth redistribution program. There is no consideration of need or deservedness. A person's 2019 income level may well not reflect their pandemic-impacted 2020 income or their degree of need (which may well vary by area and cost of living).

The governments that shut down the businesses should be the ones paying to make them whole, not other parts of the country that made better choices. It is less a natural disaster, but one of mismanagement. Rewarding poor government results in more of it. Similarly, rewarding unemployment seems to make some hesitate to return to work at less or equal pay.

There are already other income-based welfare programs in place (besides this one)..so those should have just been tweaked slightly vice a mass giveaway. Unemployment should be extended to those seeking work but unable to find any (but the amount should not be increased to make it more lucrative than work).