Experts Expound

"The only thing certain about the federal stimulus package is that nobody in Sacramento knows how much money will actually come here. Why all the secrecy? Deliberate smoke-and-mirrors or just governmental incompetence? "

Well, I usually try to deliver the most cynical reply to these surveys. But here, we have a bunch of projects thrown into one package to stimulate many different economic sectors. So it's tough, if not impossible, to nail down how much of the sum of those things goes to one geographic area. This time, it's probably neither deception nor incompetence. It's just real complicated.

Governmental smoke-and-mirrors.

Are you sure this is an either-or question?

Both. Both dynamics are linked. When there is no sunshine, no public input or stakeholder input, it leads to governmental incompetence, benign or nefarious.

It is a solution that does not fit the problem at hand. The government is going to spend billions of taxpayers money on the symptoms.

Both. Some gaming of the system. Bird in hand with tax now. Imprecise economics at two levels and many differ claims on California's share

One thing is sure, however much comes here will not stop those of us who pay taxes from figuring out how to leave California to the something-for-nothings who’ve elected the legislature. Then when California defaults on its bonds and the crisis grows even larger they can figure it out for their third world selves.
P.S. to Governor Schwarzenegger: Lower taxes increase revenue and jobs.

The bureaucracy of the bureaucracy of the bureaucracy.

The dirty little secret is that only the federal stimulus staffer gurus have even a general clue about how much money will filter in, and when. This makes the earmarks process look open!

Yes.  [John, another prediction: John Garamendi will run for re-election as Lt. Governor! I've been saying since the day he opened his campaign for governor…..]

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